Once
by silver-nightstorm
Summary: After Severus Snape disappears from the Wizarding world, Draco Malfoy finally gathers the courage to ask the one person who can possibly find the Half-Blood Prince for help – Hermione Granger.
1. I

So, here's my second attempt at Severus/Hermione. And this one is a multichap!

Well, there are a lot of Challenges that will be met in this story, so here's the list:

Project PULL Week 3, OTP Bootcamp (prompt: carcass), Quotes Challenge – The inspirational, the lyrical, and the down-right silly ("Pain and loss, they define us as much as happiness or love."), The Harry Potter 10K, The Potions competition (Mandrake Restorative Draught), Dr Who Quote Competition ("You're not gonna make the world any better by shouting at it.").

**Once**

**By silver-nightstorm**

**Summary:** After Severus Snape disappears from the wizarding world, Draco Malfoy finally gathers the courage to ask the one person who can possibly find the Half-Blood Prince for help – Hermione Granger. Project PULL Week 3. In progress.

**Chapter One**

"No."

"At least hear me out, Godfather." The blonde haired young man was whining. It had been a while since he had a proper whine.

"Do you not understand the meaning of no, boy?" demanded the tall man garbed completely in black. He stood abruptly from the plush chair he had been sitting stiffly in and moved to stand in front of the blonde. "I do not want any Malfoy charity."

Draco groaned. "Don't let your pride get in the way!" The man tried to muffle a snort, and failed. Who was Draco Malfoy to speak of pride? Draco continued as if he hadn't heard. "This isn't charity! This isn't trying to do you a favor!"

"Fine. Then this is a way for your father to regain his good standing."

"No!" Draco jumped up with this word, and looked down his pointy nose at the stubborn adult standing in front of him. He glared at the man, trying to meet the stare of Severus Snape head on. "No," he repeated, more calmly. "My father doesn't even know about this. He doesn't know I'm asking you to stay with us."

"Once again, I do not need a place to stay. I have a perfectly acceptable place of residence in Spinners End. My rooms at Hogwarts are available for me to reside in year round if I desire. I have options, Draco. I do not need your help."

Draco's shoulders slumped. He sunk back down onto the couch and buried his face in his hands. "I'm not asking you because I'm trying to do you a favor, Severus. I'm asking you because I don't know what to do anymore." The Malfoy heir looked utterly defeated. He ran his hands through his hair causing it to stick up in lopsided angles. "I need company in my home. The halls of the Manor are silent. My mother spends all of her time in her room; my father spends all of his time in his study. They don't interact; they don't even acknowledge each other when they're in the same room."

Severus looked uncomfortable with his proximity to his godson. He moved away from the distraught young man and sat down on an adjacent couch. "Your parents were never on good terms."

"At least they acknowledged the existence of the other before. For all I know now, there might only be one parent living in this house at a given time."

"Why do you think I can do anything by being here?"

"Father still blames mother for lying to the Dark Lord. He believes it was her fault that this family has been disgraced once more."

Severus scowled. "Lucius is a fool. It's his own damn fault he chose the wrong side again."

"Can't you at least…"

"Do you want me to traipse in here and act as a living announcement to your father that the reason the Dark Lord fell, the reason he lives like a pariah, is because I, and not your mother, betrayed the one thing he truly believed in? You think too much of me, Draco. I see that war has not made you any wiser. I am not that selfless."

"But you…"

"I am _not_ that selfless."

"But I don't want you to do that," muttered Draco. "My father still considers you one of his friends. In fact, you may be the only friend he still has. If you're here, he might open up more…" Draco's voice trailed off. "It was a silly thought anyway."

"Yes, it was."

Snape abruptly stood up and walked towards the hall. Draco quickly rushed after him as he swept out the door. Just as Snape was about to apparate away, something seemed to strike the blonde watching him leave. He straightened up suddenly, and a spark ignited in his eyes.

"Godfather!" he called, causing Snape to unhappily stop in his tracks. The Potions Master wasn't rude, after all, merely abrupt, abrasive, and acrid. "Godfather! What if my father wants you to be here as well? What if he asks you to stay?"

Severus didn't even turn around. He didn't look over his shoulder. "Don't you dare," he snarled to Malfoy grounds and disappeared with a crack.

Draco Malfoy grinned as Severus Snape disapparated off of Malfoy grounds. He wasn't completely honest with Severus about his reasons for offering him room and Severus himself knew that, but Draco had gone to visit his godfather in Spinners End and he was horrified by the squalor. Even a heavy cleaning charm wouldn't have done much good. The house was barely hanging on. The Malfoy family owed Severus Snape a huge deal. If the Dark Lord had survived the battle of Hogwarts, his wrath towards the Malfoys would have been felt around the world. If it wasn't for Severus…

Draco wouldn't stand for it. Severus Snape, savior of the Wizarding World, would move into Malfoy Manor whether he liked it or not.

XX

"Hello, dear friend. Long time no see."

Severus Snape tried to slam the door shut. He did his very best, in the process forgetting that he was a wizard and relying on brute force and luck, but Lucius Malfoy managed to sneak the tip of his cursed walking stick into the miniature gap between the door and the door frame. Cursing spectacularly in his head, but remaining cool on the outside, Severus abandoned his post at the other side of the door and retreated into his home. Taking this as the best invitation he would ever receive, Lucius made his way into Snape's residence on Spinners End.

It took all of Lucius's Malfoy grace to hide the grimace that yearned to appear on his face at the state of disrepair Snape lived in. The door Malfoy had just walked through had been repainted countless times but had been given up on in recent years. Chips in the blue paint showed various colors underneath, a rainbow of reds, greens, blues, and neutrals. The dim light in the room that Malfoy currently stood in came from a single clouded bulb that was strung up to the ceiling. Every few moments, the light would flicker causing sparks to run down the wiring.

There were three chairs and a couch in the room, and they surrounded a rickety table. The rectangular table once had four legs. The surviving legs were made of some sort of metal that had managed to rust. Where the forth leg would have stood was what appeared to be a broom handle, clumsily cut to size. The couch was parallel to one of the long sides of the table. It used to be white at one point, but the years had clearly gotten to it. It was now an odd shade of grey, with many other random splotches of color scattered throughout. The cushions were completely flat and the upholstery was peeping out of the loose seams. A ragged old quilt was neatly folded and placed on one arm of the couch. Two of the three chairs were opposite to the couch. They were wooden and looked as though the slightest weight would send them toppling over. The last chair was an ornate leather number that had its back to the door. At one point in time, it must have been a real masterpiece. Now, its old glamour was replaced by shabbiness and disrepair.

Lucius cautiously walked around the leather chair and looked between the couch and the wooden chairs, trying to decide which option would be better. Coming to a decision, he gingerly lowered himself onto one of the chairs. Both the wooden floor and the wood of the chair gave creaking protests causing Malfoy to flinch at the harsh sound. A derisive chuckle pulled his attention away from the unstable chair to the man seated in the leather chair.

"My answer is still the same."

"Severus, you're being very…"

"Your son was dishonest in his motives. I will not accept your charity." Severus smoothly cut Lucius off.

"This isn't charity!" protested Lucius. He gestured to the sitting room that was barely holding itself together. "No one can live in an environment like this!"

"I can," retorted Severus. "Is it really too much for me to want some peace and quiet after all these years? I do not want to interact with people. I do not want to have friends. I just want to be left alone."

"But…"

"No. For once in my life, I want to choose to be alone. This is my decision, Lucius. Can't you respect that?"

"I can't let a friend live like this," Lucius sighed. He stood abruptly and walked towards the door. "I'm not giving up, my friend."

Lucius stepped outside the dingy little house into the dingy little neighborhood it resided in. Before he even had a chance to reach for the door once more, it slammed shut behind him.

Inside the house, Severus Snape summoned a tumbler and poured himself three fingers of firewhisky. As he nursed his glass he was deep in thought. Maybe… maybe it was time to start over.

Severus Snape summoned a suitcase. With a flick of his wand, his entire life was shrunk and packed into this one tiny parcel. For the first time in years, Severus Snape smiled. It was time to start all over.

**XX**

So I hope that was enjoyable. Please let me know what you think! :D


	2. II

Hey guys! I'm back again! I haven't sent this to my beta yet so if you go to reread this and the first chapter and find it _slightly_ different at some point, that would be why :3

Important: The concept of the Wizard's Promise isn't mine, I believe I first found it in a fic by Ms-Figg, but I could be wrong there.

Disclaimer: I'm not JKR. If I was… well, I'd probably be trolling you guys on Pottermore…

No challenges were met in this chapter (sadface)

**Chapter Two**

"What do you mean he's not there?"

Lucius rolled his eyes and tried to not glare at his only son. "I mean he isn't there, Draco. And don't repeat my statements as questions. It is pointless and unseemly."

"That's not the point!" retorted Draco. "He can't just _leave_!"

"Of course he can. He just did." Lucius leveled a stare at Draco. "You cannot push that man. He will do whatever he wants to do, regardless of what those around him desire. If you push him, he won't stand for it. We pushed him and he left."

"You're going to try to find him, aren't you?"

Lucius raised an eyebrow. "You can't be serious, Draco. If that man does not want to be found, he cannot be found."

"So you're not even going to try."

"What do you want me to do?" Lucius snapped his fingers and a tiny house elf appeared. "Pinkie, locate Severus Snape."

Pinkie's tennis ball eyes widened at the request. "But… Master Malfoy…" Her voice trailed off as she began to wring her ears. "Pinkie cannot locate Master Snape. Master Snape has vanished, sir. Pinkie is sorry!"

Lucius looked at Draco. "That doesn't prove anything," scoffed the younger Malfoy.

"A house elf's magic is…"

"Yes, yes, yes… powerful, whatnot…"

"A house elf will do _anything_ to fulfill its Master's request. If a stellar elf like Pinkie here," Lucius gestured to the diminutive creature, who blushed, "doesn't even _try_ to locate Severus, it must be impossible."

Draco stood up abruptly. "Well, that's not an excuse for me, Father. I'm going to find Severus, I promise you that."

"Don't make promises you cannot keep, son."

"I will find Severus Snape." The stubbornness and drive in Draco's tone triggered something, and golden strands of magic wrapped around him. He had made a Wizard's Promise.

XX

Draco practically broke down the door to Snape's home in Spinners End in his haste to get inside. He spent an hour in the dingy sitting room trying to locate any hints of where his godfather could have disappeared to. The only difference in the room was a half-filled tumbler and a flask of firewhisky that rested on the rickety metal table.

Draco picked up the glass and examined it. Little beads of moisture had gathered on the glass and dripped onto the table. Both were dry now, but the table had a ring on it. Draco put the glass back onto the table and moved through the rest of the house.

Everywhere he went, cupboards, doors, and drawers were open. Shelves that had normally held piles of tableware were completely bare. The liquor cabinet was barren. With the exception of food, the entire kitchen had been cleaned out.

The room that Severus slept in was in the same state. Nothing remained in any of the cupboards or drawers. The huge wardrobe was empty. The attached bathroom had been completely cleaned out. Even the sheets had been ripped off the bed, and the pillows were obviously missing along with the mattress.

Severus Snape had been in such a rush to leave that he didn't even pack by hand.

XX

Asking for help doesn't come naturally to Malfoys. This could be why the young Lord Malfoy waited ten years before finally admitting to himself that he _maybe_ needed some help to get the job done.

"Well, let's say I'm looking for a person… is there a spell I could use to find them?"

"You wish to learn a tracking spell, Mister Malfoy?"

"Well, not exactly…"

"You are aware that those are illegal, yes?"

"I didn't mean it like that!"

"What did you mean it like?"

"I need to find a man and save him from himself."

The Unspeakable raised an eyebrow. "Mister Malfoy, you should know that we are not inclined to help outsiders, even those who were formerly in our employ. That being said, there is only one person in the department who has established a tracking spell for the purpose that you need it. This person is the only person who knows how to cast it. She has been known to use the spell to help those who prove their case to her. That being said…"

"Who is she?" demanded Draco, practically jumping out of his seat. "Tell me! She definitely will agree with me!"

The Unspeakable tried to hide his smirk, but failed horribly. "I highly doubt that, Master Malfoy. You see, the woman in question is… Miss Hermione Granger."

XX

Draco Malfoy was pacing. Malfoys typically didn't pace, but when they did, it was a clear indication that they were agitated.

He was in his personal study. The normally impeccably neat room was in a state of disarray as it had been for the last ten or so years. A pile of parchment was spread across the mahogany desk and quills were littered across the floor as their tips had broken off. The rubbish bin on the other side of the room had overflowed long ago and crumbled bits of parchment littered the ground around it. The young Malfoy was gripping a quill between his stained fingers. His white shirtsleeves had splotches of black on them and his blond hair had ink streaked through it. With a huge sigh, he lowered himself into the desk chair. He crumpled the parchment that had been resting in the middle of the desk and tossed it in the direction of the rubbish bin. Reached over for another sheet, he grumbled as he left fingerprints on the page where he grasped it. Ignoring the problem for the time being, he started anew. Hopefully this time, it would _finally_ be perfect.

Dear Miss Hermione Granger,

I know it has been years since we last spoke, but I hope you can do me a favor. As you remember, I was once an Unspeakable myself. After recently speaking to the head of the department, I have concluded that you are the only person who can help me with what I am trying to do. I assure you, I am in no way attempting anything illegal, devious, or harmful to the Wizarding and Muggle (and House Elf) population of the world. I really need your help.

I hope you will agree to meet me. I know we have not always been on the best terms, but I think we can put our differences aside to help one in very great need. To be honest, Granger, you're the only one brilliant enough to figure this one out.

Sincerely,

Draco Malfoy

XX

_Daily Prophet _

_January 9__th__, 2012_

_Severus Snape Still Missing_

_By Padma Patil_

_Ten years ago to this date, the infamous Severus Snape disappeared on his birthday. None of the Wizarding World knows where he is or what he's doing._

"_It's sad because we don't even know if he's alive," says Harry Potter, Order of Merlin First Class, the famous Man Who Defeated the Dark Lord. "Snape is a hero. I wouldn't have been able to succeed in what I did without him. I don't even want to think of where we would be today if it wasn't for him. He deserves to be living in luxury and fame but that might never be." _

_Snape still isn't popular by any means. Although the majority of the Wizarding People acknowledge his heroic actions and sacrifices, many people wanted to see him punished merely for holding the title of 'Death Eater'. _

"_I didn't know Snape personally back in school, but I knew of him," says Hestia Jones. "I knew about his knack for the Dark Arts. There were always nasty thing surrounding him and the gang of kids he hung out with. You know, they all ended up as Death Eaters? I don't see why he's the one 'fake' among the group. I don't care what he's done to earn the trust of Harry Potter. Let it be known that I still don't trust him. I doubt I ever will." _

_A lot of people have split feelings on Severus Snape and how he should be treated. As a former student of his, I can understand this sentiment. So can Ronald Weasley. _

"_I used to hate him in school," admits Ron Weasley, Order of Merlin First Class, member of the Golden Trio. "To be honest, I don't exactly like him now either. But I agree with Harry completely. Snape is a hero and he deserves to live like one. I know the Auror department has officially abandoned their attempts to search for him, but let it be known that Harry and I will keep looking if only to know that he's still alive." _

_While the majority of the Wizarding World wonders whether Snape is still alive or not, a select few remain firm in their belief that Severus Snape is definitely alive. Among these people, the most ardent believer is our own Hermione Granger. _

"_I'm sure he's alive," says Hermione Granger, Order of Merlin First Class, member of the Golden Trio. "I think the world would have stopped if he just sort of… died, you know?" She laughs at her comment. "That sounds silly doesn't it?" she says with another bought of laughter. "I don't know how to explain it, exactly. It's just a sort of feeling I have. He's out there, but he doesn't want to be found. When he wants to be found, trust me, we'll find him." _

_It is frankly amazing that Snape had inspired this sort of loyal belief in himself when most believe he hasn't done much to deserve it. Severus Snape has touched many people in his life, but usually in a negative way. One of his former students who was victim to his horrific teaching habits never thought that Snape would come to appreciate him in a positive way. _

"_As you all know, at the time, I didn't know that Nagini was the one that killed him," says Neville Longbottom, Order of Merlin Second Class, slayer of Nagini. "When I found out immediately after, I was happy I did what I did. We weren't sure he would survive at that point, and I thought I might have finally done something… praiseworthy in his eyes. He was that one teacher that I always wanted praise from, even though I was scared out of my bloody mind by him!" _

_As you all well know, Severus Snape did thank Mr. Longbottom for his deed when he returned to work alongside his former professor as the new Professor of Herbology in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. _

_Severus Snape is a man of many different personalities. Despite the fact that he has made many enemies in his life, and that he hasn't always taken the right path, we here at the Daily Prophet hope that we find Snape soon. It is strange for a newspaper to report this, but we don't care if we get to reveal his location or not. All that matters is the assurance that the shadowy hero of the Wizarding World is alive. Hopefully, this next decade will provide us with more insight on where Severus Snape could have vanished to. _

In a small apartment in Muggle London, an alarm rang out at 4PM. The clock that was emitting the alarm rested on a little end table next to a double bed. Underneath the clock was a book that was unidentifiable because of the excessive wear it sustained. Only the word "charms" was discernible on the cover. Beside the clock, there was another book that remained open on the table. A pair of square-rimmed glasses was propped on top of the volume acting as a bookmark.

A slight breeze filtered through the room from the rotating fan on the far side of it. A few seconds after the alarm had started ringing a pale hand reached out from under the downy cream covers on the bed and blindly reached for the clock. After a few tries, the hand managed to properly hit the off switch. After a few more seconds of fumbling, the hand found the edge of the comforters and pulled them off.

A young woman with a head of bushy brown hair sat up and looked blearily around the still dark room. She reached under her pillow and pulled out a wand patterned with ivy leaves. With a little wave and a muttered "_Lumos_!" the room lit up. Rubbing at her eyes, Hermione Granger swung her feet out of the bed, slipped on a pair of fuzzy red house slippers, and grabbed her glasses.

Slipping into the bathroom to complete her morning routine, she almost tripped over the ginger ball of fur that was her cat. Smiling softly at the sleeping feline, she walked into the bathroom. Hermione emerged an hour later looking like a new woman. She wore a set of neat, clean-cut, simple black robes. Her hair, although it was still curly, lost most of its bushiness and tidily brushed down the length of her back. She had abandoned her glasses for a pair of contacts and a light blue outline of the lens could be seen around her irises if one looked closely enough. Brushing down her robes to make sure there were no wrinkles, Hermione headed out the door towards her kitchen.

She flicked her wand while she was in the hallway and by the time she arrived in the kitchen, a bowl had already flown out of the cabinet along with a carton of milk and a box of cereal. With her wand neatly stowed in a pocket, Hermione sat at the table and ate her breakfast. Once she finished her cereal, she made herself a mug of coffee. Sipping at it slowly, she ambled into her sitting room. Setting the mug on the table, she sorted her neat stacks of papers into folders and deposited them into her bag. Finishing her coffee, Hermione gave a flick of her wand and charmed her clothing into the likeness of a black Muggle business suit. With one last look around her apartment, and one last flick of her wand to send the coffee mug sailing into the sink to wash itself, Hermione hefted her bag and walked out the door.

XX

"Miss Granger, if you would?"

Hermione had barely had a chance to sit at her desk before people began to dump piles of paper on it. There were new grants that she needed to sign, new research ideas that needed to be approved, and paperwork to fill out for her new patents. As assistant department head, Hermione did everything that the department head couldn't do. Since the man was more than a tad lazy, Hermione did a lot. She barely had a couple hours a day to work on her independent research, but it was more than she needed to create more spells than the rest of the spells department combined. That, however, led to even more paperwork.

Not only was Hermione absorbed in doing work for the Spells Department, she frequently did work for the Unspeakables. Although she wasn't _officially_ an Unspeakable (they didn't take too kindly to her destroying their department in her fifth year), she did work on par with most in their department. She had actually been recommended to them by Draco Malfoy, a fact that never ceased to amaze her. It was through her work with the Unspeakables that she was able to create her best spells – her pride and joy, so to speak.

At precisely 1:23, Hermione sorted all of the papers on her desk in order of priority. She quickly dusted off her robes (which had been charmed back from the Muggle-ish appearance as soon as she arrived in the Ministry), grabbed her bag, and headed down to the Ministry food court for lunch. She picked out her usual fare and parked herself at her usual table. Hermione pulled out a book and began to absently shovel pasta into her mouth. A clearing of a throat pulled her out of her world and she looked across the table to see a redheaded wizard grinning at her.

"Earth to Mione," grinned Ronald Weasley. "I'd say good morning, but it's a bit too late for that."

Hermione smiled at Ron and sighed. "What is it, Ron?" she asked. "I'm a bit busy…" She looked pointedly at the book in her left hand.

Ron's face turned red and he absently scratched the back of his neck. "Sorry Mione," he mumbled. "I thought you were reading _Hogwarts: A History_ again."

Hermione tried to hold back her snicker but she couldn't help it. "It's all right, Ron." She placed her book down on the table and quickly put her bookmark in place. After she returned the book to her bag, she turned her attention back to her lunch and Ron.

"Well…" began Ron awkwardly. "How've you been?"

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "How've I been?" she repeated, trying not to laugh again.

"I mean," Ron said, "Harry and I haven't seen you in _months_."

"My job is pretty stressful," replied Hermione, taking another bite of her pasta. "I've had a lot of paperwork to do, and I just finished developing a spell. I just patented it last week."

"Anything the Aurors could use?" he asked eagerly.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Yes and no," she said. "It's a tracking spell, and it's not precisely legal."

Ron let out a low whistle. "Nice, Hermione. Way to take rule breaking to a whole new level." He grinned as he playfully teased his longtime friend. "Didn't know you had it in you."

Resisting the urge to throw something at Ron, Hermione continued. "The spell is under my complete control. No one else knows how to use it, not even the other members of my departments. The Ministry can monitor when the spell is used, but since I'm the only person who can use it that's sort of an unnecessary precaution. It's perfectly legal-ish with all the restrictions the Ministry has put on it. It would be very useful to you Aurors, but I can't teach it to you."

"But _Mione_, think of how _useful_—"

"Ronald!" Hermione exclaimed. The redhead put his hands up defensively and leaned back in his chair.

"I'm just joking, Mione. I'm just joking." Ron grinned and stood up. "Well, my lunch break is over. D'you think you could hang with Harry and me this weekend, catch up a bit?"

"I can't make any promises," said Hermione wryly. "But I'll definitely try."

Her response was apparently good enough for Ron because he grinned. Throwing his arms around his petite friend, Ron gave Hermione a huge hug and walked out of the cafeteria whistling a horribly off-key rendition of Celestina Warbeck's anthem for Puddlemere United – _Beat Back Those Bludgers, Boys, and Chuck That Quaffle Here_.

Hermione reached into her bag and pulled out her book once more.

XX

At precisely 1:50, Hermione returned to her office. She spent the next four hours sorting through more paperwork and had almost cleared her desk when an assistant dumped even more on top of her. With a huge sigh, Hermione packed up for the day and headed home.

On her arrival in the tiny apartment, she settled down on her comfy couch and was just about to take a power nap before attempting more paperwork when an insistent tapping at the window got her attention. Hermione shuffled into the kitchen to let the eagle owl into her home. The owl swooped in with a majestic air and settled itself on the granite countertop.

"Oh, move to the chair!" sighed Hermione, trying to push the owl onto one of the wooden kitchen chairs to avoid the inevitable scratch marks its claws would create on her pristine countertop. The owl refused to move. Hermione untied the letter around its leg and offered it a biscuit. The owl studied the biscuit intently and sniffed it a couple times before turning its head away.

Hermione tore into the letter and snickered at the owl's attitude. Only one person in the world would have an owl that haughty, and Hermione Granger could not, for her life, understand why he wanted to speak to her now.

XX

"If Professor Snape doesn't want to be found, what makes you think that even my spell can find him? For all you know, he could have cast the Fidelius Charm on his new house. My spell can't break through that. And he's been missing for ten years! What makes you so certain the trail hasn't gone cold already?"

"I'm serious, Granger. You're the only person who has any sort of chance to find him and bring him home. I really need your help. I should have asked you earlier, but… I didn't know if you'd agree to help me." Draco held a hand up as Hermione readied herself to shout at him. "I know now that was a very mistaken idea I had, Granger. I should have come to you earlier. I know. But in my defense, you didn't actually develop the tracking spell until recently. But… you need to help me. He's in a self destructive rut."

Hermione's jaw dropped open as she fixed Draco with a baffled look. "He's in a rut? I… what? What does that even mean?"

"He didn't expect to survive the final battle, Granger," replied Draco, running a hand through his hair. "He was perfectly ready to die that day. In fact, he _wanted_ to die that day. When he woke up in St. Mungo's three days later, he thought he was dead. But when he found out what you did…"

"Don't you _dare_ play the guilt card here, Malfoy!" snarled Hermione. She gripped the cushion on either side of her to avoid jumping up and strangling the calm man sitting across from her. "I was saving a _hero_!"

"I'm not trying to play a guilt card, Granger. Don't get your knickers in a twist." His voice had grown loud during his last statement, and he fought to control his temper. Draco shifted in his seat so he was leaning forward with his forearms braced on his knees. He twisted his left arm so the pale remnant of the Dark Mark was visible like an old scar and continued much more calmly. "This mark ruled his life for nearly three decades. When he woke up to find it almost gone, he was beyond shocked. When he realized that Potter had managed to defeat the Dark Lord, he practically fainted. When he understood that his memories had been released to the world to keep him out of Azkaban, he wanted to die. My godfather was, and always will be, a secretive man. When he found out that his memories were visible to the entire public…"

"He must have been horrified…" said Hermione softly. She had relaxed back into her seat. She couldn't help but feel defensive around Draco. They had barely talked in the fourteen years that had passed since the war, and Hermione knew in her heart that Draco Malfoy was not the same boy he was in school, but old habits die hard. Every now and then, Hermione could glimpse the boy that she had punched in her third year. However, Hermione Granger was, if anything, patient and tolerant (she had to be, after dealing with the other two-thirds of the Golden Trio). She could have a civil conversation with Draco Malfoy. She really could.

"His life hasn't been easy these last years. He's either treated as a hero, or a pariah. Little kids could either run up to him on the street and ask for his autograph," both Hermione and Draco had trouble keeping straight faces at that mental image of Snape calmly signing little sheets of parchment for snotty children, "or they could run up to him on the street and spit on his shoes. He has no privacy, no personal life, and no enjoyment. He lives in squalor, although I really can't understand why. Severus has more than enough money to afford all of Diagon Alley, Gringotts included, but he refuses to spend it. It's like he's living his life in penance for the mistakes he's made in his past."

"Hasn't he paid enough?"

"That's just it, Granger. You see it, I see it, my parents see it. God, even Potter and Weaselby see it, but Severus can't accept it. He doesn't know anything in life beyond paying for his mistakes. He doesn't think he deserves to live…"

"Of course he does!" Hermione finally jumped out of her seat. "He, out of any person I know, deserves to live! That's why I saved him! That's why he's still here! He _has_ to be able to understand that!"

"That's why I need your help, Granger. Not just to locate him, I need you to convince him to come back. You're the person who believed in him to save him once. You're the person who believes he's still alive despite all the rubbish the papers print. Now he needs you again, he needs you to save him again."

"I…" Hermione sunk back down onto the couch, wringing her hands. "I don't know, Draco, I'm very busy right now…"

"Please. Please… Hermione."

Silence reigned in the room for a minute as both parties remained frozen, staring at each other in breathless anticipation.

XX

Thanks for reading! Please review! It's a bit disheartening to find so many people following a story when they don't review :( But thank you for reading, and I hope you stick with me 'til the end.


	3. III

Right, one more chapter :D Thanks for reading so far guys! It means a bunch to me :D

Disclaimer: If I was JKR, I would have a new laptop to type this on. Considering how I'm not JKR, I don't have a new laptop to type this on... yet.

No challenges were met in this chapter :(

**Chapter Three **

"I'll need to take off from work. Knowing Professor Snape, he's probably gone to some desolate locale. And, with his… attitude to remain there, it could take forever to convince him otherwise."

XX

"You're kidding me, right?"

"Of course not, Ronald! I'm offended you'd even think so!"

"If you didn't want to hang out with us tomorrow, you could have just said no…"

"Ha ha, very funny Harry," Hermione rolled her eyes at her two best friends as she shoveled through her closet looking for certain clothing. "I'm not joking, and I'm really going."

"To _America_. With _Malfoy_. To find _Snape_ and convince him to come _back_." Ron's face was twisted into an expression of disgust. "Really, Mione. If the man wants to leave to torture students somewhere else, by all means, let him go."

"Ronald!" Hermione shrieked. Dropping the shirts she had recently grabbed, she marched over and poked her index finger into Ron's chest. "Don't you _dare_ say something like that again! Severus Snape is a hero, and he deserves to live like one! Draco and I are going to bring him back home and show the world what a wonderful man he is!"

"So now it's _Draco_ is it?"

"Ronald!"

Harry laid a calming hand on both of his friends' shoulders. "You both need to relax a bit," he said seriously. When he was certain neither party would attack the other, Harry backed away from the two. Adjusting his glasses, he turned to Ron. "You out of anyone should know that when Hermione makes up her mind, no one can change her opinion. She's found herself a new cause, and Merlin forbid she'll give it up anytime soon."

Ron sighed. "It's like SPEW all over again," he muttered.

"That's S. P. E. W. to you!" retorted Hermione, under her breath.

Harry grinned wryly as he looked at the two. "Good luck, Mione. You'll definitely need it."

"I'm trying to do the right thing, Harry. I really am."

"I know, Mione. And somewhere in this thick skull," Harry knocked a fist against Ron's head causing the redhead to scowl, "he gets it to. Really. Go do what you gotta do. Hogwarts can't function without the Bat of the Dungeons. The Wizarding World can't function without him." Harry gave Hermione a gentle hug and left her apartment with Ron in tow.

Hermione smiled fondly after the two. They were her friends to the end, they would always be. She was sincerely sorry that she couldn't spend time with them, but the only portkey that was anywhere near their destination in the United States left this evening at 6:37.

In the last fourteen years, Ron hadn't changed much at all. For the first two years after the final battle with Voldemort, Hermione and Ron had tried their hand at dating. It was painfully obvious to the two that they wouldn't last after the first month or so – they were so accustomed to being friends that suddenly being lovers was simply awkward – but they kept trying because their friends and family expected it. Finally, the two broke up. Things were a tad uneasy for a bit (because regardless of how awkward a relationship is, no one likes being broken up with) but the two quickly mended their differences and regained their old friendship. Ten years ago, Ron had started to date Susan Bones, and Hermione couldn't have been happier for them. She was hoping that Susan's maturity would wear off on her redheaded friend, but it seemed to be too big of a miracle. Now that the two were married and Susan was expecting a child. Hermione's greatest fear was that the kid would be as crazy as his father.

Harry, meanwhile, had really matured in the last few years. He had lost much of his childhood impulsiveness and had become a thoughtful adult. He had an on-again off-again relationship with Ginny Weasley, mostly because he still had feelings of guilt for sort of abandoning her in his seventh year. But Ginny would give him a stern talking-to and the two would be back together right away. They were currently on-again and living in Harry's house in Godric's Hollow. Mrs. Weasley was clamoring for the two to get married, but Hermione knew they would take their own sweet time.

Hermione had dove into Ministry work right after she re-did her seventh year at Hogwarts. Most of the students during the war had opted to just skip their last year or move on to the next year with private tutoring. Only a handful of Hermione's class had returned that year (among them were Draco Malfoy, the Patil Twins, and all of Ravenclaw House) to complete their schooling and N.E.W.T.s. Most of them, like Harry and Ron, took a special sitting of the N.E.W.T.s in July following the battle and were immediately accepted into their programs. Harry and Ron were automatically accepted into the Auror program.

Hermione, meanwhile, chose to do an apprenticeship at Hogwarts. She was officially the Transfiguration apprentice, but she worked with Flitwick, Snape, Sinistra, and Vector as well. Hermione was honestly shocked when Snape agreed to let her do some apprentice work with him, but she was glad for the experience (despite the fact that she was frequently called a know-it-all and treated like a first year). After two years of apprentice-work, Hermione was able to take the exams to become a Spells Mistress. When she received her certification with flying colors, she joined the spells department in the Ministry. A year later, she was also working with the Unspeakables due to Draco Malfoy's recommendation and had been doing such for the last ten years.

The Golden Trio had really grown up.

XX

"_Not available_? We were just here yesterday! How can the portkey be _unavailable_?"

"Mister Malfoy, we're really sorry but the portkey was cancelled…"

"Why?" shrieked Hermione, causing the poor young girl who was acting as the secretary to jump.

"I'm afraid I wasn't informed why, Miss Granger," mumbled the girl. She was about twenty-seven years old (Hermione remembered seeing a younger version of her in Hogwarts) but appeared to be maybe seventeen. She had mousy brown hair and a pair of horn-rimmed glasses that looked like they were stolen right off of Percy Weasley's face. The girl (whose name tag read 'Minnie Dagworth') had nervous hands with intricately painted fingernails that she kept wringing together as she looked back and forth between the incensed blonde and the irascible brunette. "However, I can arrange for you to take a plane to the United States. There actually is a flight tonight in about seven hours from London Heathrow that goes to Philadelphia. I can set up the entire thing through the Ministry, along with car rentals and such. Miss Granger, I trust you know how Muggle travel by plane works, correct?"

"Yes," said Hermione, looking none to happy about the situation.

"Thank goodness, because I don't," replied the girl with a nervous giggle. "You both have passports?" Hermione nodded, followed quickly by Draco. "Good, then you're all set! Your plane departs at 12:35. Have fun!"

XX

The airport was a bustling hub of insanity, even at 10 PM. Police officers were on guard at every corner, keeping an eye out for any trouble. People rushed back and forth, scrambling into lines to check in to their flights. A woman sporting the most magnificent bed head sprinted by in sweatpants and a sweatshirt hauling her single suitcase. A gaggle of teenaged American girls talked loudly and laughed uproariously in the Jet Airways check in line. A pair of sisters were alternating between glaring at each other and then at the officer who was looking through their travel documents.

Hermione had un-shrunk all of her luggage and applied lightening charms on them (she vaguely remembered something about weight limits on international baggage, but she couldn't for her life remember the exact numbers, she hadn't travelled on plane in a while). She was now sporting a little luggage cart that she piled her three suitcases onto. Next to her, Draco was unwillingly pushing one as well with his own customized suitcases sitting on top.

Hermione and Draco stood in line to check in to their flight on Delta Airlines. In front of them, a young Muggle girl was holding her mother's hand and whining loudly.

"But mum, I don't wanna go on the plane. They're scary."

"Honey, we have to go on the plane. We need to go home."

"But I don't wanna!"

Draco was standing shoulder to shoulder with Hermione and glaring holes in the back of the woman's head. Casting a wandless Muffliato, Draco muttered, "Can't that silly girl just be quiet? I don't get why she's getting so worked up about a stupid plane ride!"

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Do you even know how a plane works?" she asked.

"Some Fizzicks, or something like that," replied Draco. "I think it's called Air-oh-die-namicks." He smirked at Hermione, proud of himself for coming up with that word.

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Well, anyway, you need to give me your passport so I can check us in."

"About that passport… what exactly is a passport?"

"You're joking, right?" Hermione stared at the blonde next to her. "Please, dear Merlin, tell me you're joking."

"No."

"Bloody hell, Draco! Why didn't you just say you don't have a passport!"

"I don't get what the big deal is!" retorted Draco. "What's a passport anyway?"

"It's a document that says you're permitted to travel outside of the country," Hermione sighed. "If you don't have one, they won't let you leave."

"You're telling me that Severus has a passport?"

"Well, I don't know. He's a half-blood so it's possible, but probably not…"

"Well, if he can go out of the country without a passport, so can I."

Hermione let out a groan. After casting a wandless Notice-Me-Not spell, she pulled out her passport and slipped her wand partially out of her sleeve. Tapping on the side of her passport, she hissed "_Geminio_" and a second copy of the passport rested on top of the original in her hands. Opening the copy, Hermione transfigured the duplicate's picture of her face into a picture of Draco. With a few more spells, the passport had Draco's birthday and signature in place and the pages that chronicled Hermione's travels had been wiped blank.

Hermione held the tiny dark red booklet up in Draco's face. "Now, this replica won't fool the air traffic control officials, so I'll need you to cast a Confundus Charm whenever I give this to someone." Hermione rolled her eyes. "Seriously, Malfoy. Next time, just get a real passport."

"Why should I bother when you can make such a nice duplicate?" Draco smirked and Hermione rolled her eyes.

XX

From what Hermione remembered of planes, this one was actually rather large. It had two isles, with two seats by each window and a section of four seats in the middle. Hermione had been hoping for window seats (she loved the overhead view of London) but naturally, she was stuck in the middle seats. She did have the presence of mind to snag the isle seat before Draco had the presence of mind to protest otherwise.

While Hermione was able to comfortably sit in her seat, Draco's legs were too long. His knees were crushed up against the seat in front of him, and the newspapers and safety guidelines in the seat pocket kept falling out whenever he fidgeted.

"Granger, these seats are fucking miniscule. How do they expect people to actually sit in them?"

"Stop being a brat, Malfoy. Just sit in the damned seat and shut it."

"Mummy, those people are saying bad words."

Hermione groaned and buried her head in her hands. Draco glared at the toddler sitting on the chair next to him. The little boy gave Draco a toothy grin.

"Mummy, this man is making a funny face!"

Draco groaned, and tried to bite back a snappish retort. Children. Ugh.

XX

"Granger, what the hell is this?"

"Hmm?" Hermione looked up at Draco, her glasses slightly off center on her nose. "What's what?"

"_This_," Draco managed. He was gritting his teeth together and his hands were holding the arm rests in a death grip. "What the hell is going on right now?"

"This?" asked Hermione, momentarily confused. Understanding dawned on her when she registered the plane rapidly picking up speed. "_This_ is take-off."

"What the fuck is that?"

"Malfoy, I asked you if you knew how planes work."

"Of course I don't know how a bloody plane works, you should know that!" yelped Draco. His hands were starting to go numb.

"You can let go," retorted Hermione. "It's perfectly safe. In order to get into the air, the plane first builds up acceleration. When it reaches a certain speed, the pilot pulls the plane up into the air and then we're flying."

"That is absolutely barbaric."

Hermione snorted and buried her head back into the book. "It's actually genius, but I suppose I can settle for 'barbaric'."

XX

"Bloody hell!"

Hermione was jolted out of her nap with the sound of Draco's yell. "What's going on?" she murmured, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and slipping on her glasses. Her vision focused on Draco and she burst into laughter. "What happened to you?"

"This dunderheaded kid," Draco pointed to the boy sitting next to him, who was currently crying, "puked on me! Granger, he _puked_ on me! _Puked_!"

Tears were leaking from Hermione's eyes as she tried to hold back her hysterical laughter. The expression on Draco's face, part distraught part disgusted, didn't help her at all. She shakily pulled herself out of her seat into the isle.

"Go clean yourself off, Draco."

"But…"

"Are you a wizard or not?" she sighed. "Clean yourself off and come sit back down. And don't cause anymore trouble."

"But I didn't do anything!"

Hermione slipped out of her seat and shooed Draco down towards the little lavatory. Sitting back down, she felt someone gently touch her arm. She looked across Draco's seat to see the toddler's mother looking at her.

"I'm so sorry about him," she said softly. She had kind hazel eyes and wild curling black hair. Her skin was a flawless caramel color and she had an open, honest face. "It's his first time flying and…"

"Don't worry about it," replied Hermione, finally calming down from her laughter. "Draco can be a bit harsh, but he'll be fine. I'm actually sorry if he scared your son with his shouting."

"It's fine, really," replied the mother. "I hope I didn't upset your boyfriend too badly."

Hermione started laughing again. "Oh, goodness, he's not my boyfriend," she smiled. "He's barely my friend, to be honest."

"Well, I'm sorry nonetheless."

"It really isn't a problem. To be honest, I'm glad this happened. I've had a pretty rough day, but you've certainly brightened it quite a bit!" Hermione grinned. "Although, I'm sure Draco would disagree with me…"

**XX**

Thanks for reading! Please review!


	4. IV

Challenges Met: The Dr Who Quote Competition! Yay~! :D Finally, met a prompt~ You'll get one in the next chapter too :)

Please review! :D

**Chapter Four**

"You're not gonna make the world any better by shouting at it," said Hermione calmly. She was carefully driving a rental car out of the Philadelphia Airport. Draco, meanwhile, was sitting next to her and cursing spectacularly as he tried to make sense of the map he was holding. Hermione had already told him that he was holding it upside down.

"I can try," muttered Draco. "I don't understand why we have to use a stupid map anyway. Why can't we just use a Point Me spell and…"

"Drive through the wilderness?" finished Hermione. "This is a rental car, Draco. If we ruin it, we have to pay fines. It's just more paperwork for me to fill out, because goodness knows you won't."

"Dammit, it's too early. And I didn't get any sleep because of that stupid child. I swear, I don't want any children. Ever."

"Your parents probably won't be too pleased by that."

"I don't care. Children are monsters."

Hermione rolled her eyes at Draco's childish behavior. "Just relax, Draco. I knew you'd be inept with the map," – "Hey!" – "so I had already memorized the route."

"You never did tell me exactly where we're going."

"Well, I don't know exactly. My spell could only track Professor Snape to a small suburb in the south of New Jersey. It's called 'Medford'."

"Why would Severus go there? It's in the middle of nowhere!"

"Solitude, maybe? Or maybe he didn't want to be in a place where people would recognize him."

"And how do you propose we actually find him?" demanded Draco, staring sullenly out of the window. The map was on the ground, crumpled.

"Patience. He has to show up eventually."

Draco turned around to face Hermione, who remained fixated on the road. "That's your plan, Granger? Seriously?"

Hermione sighed. "Look, just by us being there, Snape will try something. I mean, we're not exactly undercover. We're Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy, randomly vacationing in some tiny suburb in the middle of nowhere, together. He's going to do something."

"And if he doesn't?"

"Well, then we think of a plan B."

Hermione sighed. "Anyway, don't complain. There's only one Hotel-like thing in Medford, and it's a bit out of the way. It's a bit silly to stay at a Hotel at this point. Plus we can just charm this car to be very comfortable."

"So what do we do before the town wakes up?"

"Find a place to get breakfast, park there, and wait for it to open. What do you want to eat?"

"I don't care."

"Well, when I was looking up information about the town, I found a local bagel shop that seems very popular. I say we wait there. They open at 6AM so we can just nap until then."

"This food better be good, Granger."

XX

Hermione carefully maneuvered the tiny car through the streets of the tiny South Jersey suburb. Everywhere she looked, she saw trees and more trees. Medford was a quiet, sleepy town, very calm in comparison to the hustle and bustle of Wizarding and Muggle London. She finally pulled in front of the bagel shop at a time way too early in the morning to be spoken of. Draco was already asleep in the passenger seat, snoring lightly on every other breath. Hermione set a ward around the car and closed her eyes.

She woke up to the sound of someone tapping on the glass. Looking around blearily for a few moments before grabbing her glasses, Hermione looked out the window quizzically to see a confused Muggle girl rapping on the window. Hermione rolled the window down and Draco opened the conversation with a very eloquent "bloody hell" as he woke up because of the cool blast of air that came in through the car.

The girl outside of the window pushed a curl of short black hair out of her face and spoke. "Do you know what time it is?" she began. "You're going to be late to school."

"School?" said Hermione. "But we're not in…"

The girl looked amused. "Whatever you say," she giggled. "I'm Vera, and you're late. Come on, it's 6:50. If we don't get breakfast now, we won't make it to homeroom on time."

Hermione and Draco looked at each other, completely befuddled. They both got out of the car and followed Vera into the Medford Bagel Shop. As she walked in, she kept looking over her shoulder and chattering at the two.

"So you must be the two new transfer students that the principal told us about yesterday. All he said was that you guys were from the U.K. so when I heard you accent and saw the rental car I figured you guys had to be the ones. I mean, how many other people here in Medford speak with your accent. By the way," she turned around and laid a hand on Draco's left forearm causing him to glare at her and snatch his arm back, "I adore those accents. They're so awesome! I wish I had a cooler accent, but the Jersey sound is basically mocked now. Damned Jersey Shore."

Vera skipped up to the counter and started chattering with the clerk. "One plain bagel with jalapeño cream cheese. Toasted, please." Spinning around to face Hermione and Draco, her hair bouncing, Vera asked, "What do you two want? Oh, what are your names by the way? I totally forgot to ask." She looked sheepish.

"Hermione Granger," managed Hermione. "Plain bagel is fine."

"Draco Malfoy," said Draco, after receiving an unkind elbow in the gut from Hermione when he didn't reply right away. "And I'll have the same."

"Huh," said Vera. "You guys got strange names. Raised by hippies, or something?" She giggled at her own joke as Hermione tried not to smile too much at the offended expression on Draco's face.

As Vera continued to chatter to the various other people in the tiny shop, Draco turned to Hermione. "Granger, we're thirty fucking years old. Please don't tell me I look like a Hogwarts Student."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Of course you don't," she retorted, "but Wizards age slower than Muggles so we don't look older than twenty-two. You know that. But…" Hermione trailed off, a look of slight guilt on her face.

"Granger," began Draco. "What's going on…"

"In my defense, it's still in the experimental stages. I wasn't exactly sure what would happen."

"_It_? What _it_?"

"It is another experimental spell that I've been working on. We've found that there are some Muggles that can… sort of 'see through' Muggle repelling spells. Because of this, they've asked me to try to develop a new type of spell to disguise us from Muggles. My spell doesn't keep Muggles away from us, but it incorporates us into their memories somehow so they believe that we belong, even with any of the oddities that surround us. She," Hermione gestured to Vera, who was hopping from foot to foot in front of the counter waiting on the bagels, "goes to a school where the principal actually did announce that there are two new European transfer students arriving. When she saw us, her mind thought that the rental car indicated we were from out of country…"

"Which we are."

"… and when she spoke to us, she figured we were the new students because of our accents. Of course, she didn't need to check on us at all, but I suppose she's just one of those 'naturally curious' types of people."

"But we're not the transfer students. What happens when the real ones show up?"

"Well, we'll just have to go along with it," replied Hermione. "And we'll worry about that bridge when we cross it. Plus, look at her. She knows everyone in here. If we stick around her, we might find that she knows someone who could be like Snape."

"But how would she…"

"It's our best bet to find him right now, Draco. You really can't have any objections."

"But she's a Muggle." Hermione raised an eyebrow. Draco hurried to clarify. "No, I mean, she'll get curious eventually. What the hell do we tell her then? Plus, she seems rather dim."

"Because she talks to people?" Hermione snorted. "That's the most idiotic thing I've ever heard come out of your mouth, Draco. And I've heard you say some pretty ridiculous things over the past years."

Draco was spared from the humiliation of not having a good retort by Vera's reappearance. "Here you go!" she crowed, handing the two their bagels. "Now, seriously. We should get going. We have exactly twenty minutes 'til homeroom."

Vera spun around to face the door and started to walk out when she froze with her hand on the doorknob. "Um," she managed, pointing outside the window. "Isn't that your car?"

Hermione looked out the window properly to see a disgruntled police officer standing next to their car; his arms crossed, his foot tapping, and his expression rather cross.

**XX**

I hope you enjoyed that! Please review!


	5. V

Sorry for the delay in updates! I've been busy organizing my stuff for college :3

Competitions Met: The OTP Bootcamp - "carcass"

**Chapter Five**

"Granger, what the hell."

"Why is it that whenever something goes wrong, you blame me?" seethed Hermione, clenching her fists and glaring at Draco. In a preventive gesture, Vera moved between the two and waved her hands in their faces.

"Um, I don't mean to barge in here, but shouldn't we see what's happening?" she said. Hermione sighed and relaxed her hands and Draco rolled his eyes one more time. The two headed out the door, bagels in tow, to talk to the officer.

"Oh, hello Officer Sanders!" said Vera cheerfully from behind Draco. "What's the problem here?"

"Hello Vera," said the officer, smiling slightly as Draco stared gobsmacked. She even knew the bloody police officer by name. (Hermione shot a look towards him and hissed under her breath, "She knows everyone!") "Nothing really is the matter, but I would like to know who drove this car and parked it. This parking job is even more atrocious than yours."

Vera turned bright red and ran a hand through her shoulder length curls. "Officer, my parking isn't really _that_ bad…"

"I'm just joking with you, Vera. But this job," he gestured to the rental car, which was somehow parked across three spots, "is. Who drove?"

Hermione stepped up and nervously looked at the officer. "I did, sir." Draco noticed her fingering her sleeve. "Is there a problem?"

"Ma'am, I'd like to see your license."

Hermione gestured slightly with her wand hand. "You do not need to see my license."

Officer Sanders hesitated for a moment and then laughed uproariously. "Of course I don't need to see your license!" he guffawed. "But I do need to remove this rental from your possession. You clearly do not know how to properly park, miss."

Hermione gaped at the officer. "But… ah," she waved her wand hand again, "you do not need to remove this rental from my possession."

"I'm afraid I can't let you keep this car, Ma'am. I'm seriously sorry, but I don't think it's safe for you to drive."

Officer Sanders turned to Vera. "Get to school quickly, don't be late again! Your homeroom teacher is a piece of work." Vera rolled her eyes and waved bye to the officer as he got into his car and phoned for someone to come take the car away.

Hermione groaned and sat down on the curb. Putting her head in her hands, she proceeded to mutter unkind words under her breath. Draco rolled his eyes.

"Granger, do you not have a driver's license?" demanded Draco. "And why didn't that spell work?" he hissed quietly.

"I don't know. And I do have a driver's license," said Hermione, her voice muffled, "but it's only valid in the U.K."

Vera giggled at this comment. "Nice try with your Jedi Mind Trick, though. Sanders usually finds that a riot. He was acting a bit funny this time…"

"Aren't you getting late for school?" snapped Draco, cutting off her train of thought before Vera realized something fishy was going on. Vera gaped at the rude blonde and then gasped in horror all in one motion.

"We're all going to be late!" she shrieked. "And now that you don't even have a car… I'll give you a lift!"

Vera raced over to a red Acura and opened the door. She slid into the driver's seat and rolled down the windows. "Come on!" she shouted. "We're going to be late!"

Hermione got off the curb and dragged herself to the car. Before she had taken two steps, Draco pulled her to the side. "Granger, is this really a good idea? Going to _school_? With a _Muggle_?"

"What else can we do, Draco?" retorted Hermione wearily. "We have no car, and I'm really too tired to follow that officer to properly use a memory charm on him to get our car back. Let's just go to this school and get this day over with, all right? We'll search for Professor Snape properly tomorrow after we get some sleep."

Draco sighed and began to walk to the car. He opened the passenger side door and slid in next to Vera who had begun to munch on her bagel.

"Good, you're ready," she managed through a mouthful of cream cheese. Hermione got into the car as well and Vera pushed the gear into reverse, bagel still in one hand. "Let's get going."

XX

Draco stared out the window as Vera pulled out of the quiet bagel shop parking lot onto the street. They waited at a traffic light for a good five minutes before Vera had an opening to make her right turn. She drove three feet down the street before stopping once more behind a huge line of cars.

"What's this?" muttered Draco, leaning forward in his seat to look at the traffic. "I thought this was a tiny town."

"It is," replied Vera, "but when the majority of the town goes the same way, like they do now, things get pretty crowded. Welcome to early morning school traffic, a high school driver's worst nightmare. This is the reason I'm chronically late. No matter how early I leave, I can't seem to beat it."

There were thirty cars in front of Vera's that led up to the traffic light. Draco stared out the widow once more as the line of lemmings slowly inched forward. They inched past a bank, a CVS, and a two hair salons, followed immediately by a shopping center that seemed to contain three more hair salons. On the other side of the street was a homey restaurant named _Rustic Grille_ and a Hallmark sporting job opening signs all over the windows. It took three turns of the light until Vera was speeding along the tree lined road on the other side of the five way intersection. Draco glimpsed a speed limit sign and quickly took a look at what Hermione had informed him was the speed-owe-meter. His eyes widened and he pointed to the device.

"Please tell me that's broken."

Vera looked down at the speedometer and shook her head no. "Nope, that's correct. Why?"

"You're speeding. Twenty miles per hour over the speed limit."

"We're late," said Vera matter of fact-ly. "And cops aren't ever on this street at this time." She took a hand off the wheel and pointed in front of her and behind her. The car in front was at least fifty feet ahead of them now, and the car behind them was right on the bumper of Vera's Acura. "And besides, everyone speeds now. People usually go faster. That's why the asshat behind me insists on getting up close and personal. Dick." Vera looked carefully in her rearview mirror. "Oh, just as I thought. It's Alex. He's the most impatient person in the world. Give a girl some breathing room, asshat!"

Draco snorted at the girl's attitude.

"But speeding isn't a problem now, anyway. If a cop catches me now, I'm screwed no matter what."

"Please don't tell me you're a juvenile delinquent," came Hermione's soft voice from the back seat. "I really couldn't deal with any added stress today."

Vera laughed loudly and obnoxiously, causing Draco to inch away from her a tad. "God, no," she managed between hiccoughs. "Nothing like that. I'm just not supposed to drive with more than one person in the car since I'm still seventeen. Stupid New Jersey driving laws, that's what it is. But seriously, it's no big deal. Not even gonna lie, there are _no_ cops on this road right now…"

Vera's train of thought abruptly ended as she slammed on the brakes and uttered a loud expletive. The Jeep that had previously been so far ahead of her was now two feet from the front end of her car. Vera growled as she quickly slid the car into park and opened the door. With a loud bang, she slammed the door shut and stalked around the car. Draco watched her tiny figure as she made her way down the road. She disappeared from sight behind the Jeep that was stopped before them only to let out a shriek that was clearly audible through the widow. Reacting on instinct, Draco jumped out of the car, pulled out his wand, and sprinted to where she had disappeared, Hermione hot on his trail.

Vera stood frozen. The car that was in front of them was a sturdy Jeep, but the entire front of the vehicle was completely totaled. On the ground a few feet in front of the Jeep was the carcass of a deer. Shaking herself out of her shock, Vera moved to the driver's door of the Jeep. Slowly opening the door, she took breaths as she saw the state of the boy who was driving.

"That's Bobby Jones," she managed, pointing at the door. "That's Bobby Jones." The sight of the blood, both on the road from the deer and on Bobby, finally seemed to be too much. Vera fainted. Draco managed to catch her before she hit the ground. As he moved her light form to lean against the side of one of the Jeep's tires, Hermione started to mutter healing spells under her breath at the boy in the car. His breathing slowly stabilized and turned normal and when that happened, Hermione let out a sigh of relief. She managed this none too soon. The person in the car behind Vera's (a certain previously mentioned asshat named Alex) finally made it to the Jeep but, thankfully, a bit too late to witness Hermione stow her wand back into her sleeve.

"Shit, man!" managed the burly redheaded kid who ran up. "That's Bobby! The fuck happened?" The boy noticed Vera's unconscious form leaning against the side of the car and swore again. "Did she hit him?" he said. "Stupid bitch can't drive for her life."

Hermione was about to step forward to tell the boy what happened, but shockingly Draco beat her.

"You ought to shut up if you know what's good for you," growled the blonde. "The girl was the first one here to _help_. You haven't done much at all other than stand here and make an idiot out of yourself. If you'd care to look around, you'd see that your idiotic friend here managed to hit a deer. Don't you dare blame her. And don't you dare call anyone that name again."

The redhead looked at Draco for a good three seconds before he threw a punch.

Oddly enough, before he even entered the high school that Vera attended, Draco Malfoy gained a reputation of being a brawler. He hadn't realized that at the time the boy (who's full name was Alex Sanchez) threw a punch at him, a crowd of people had gathered around the Jeep. Someone had, thankfully, had the presence of mind to call for an ambulance and the police. Luckily for Bobby, Hermione had healed most of his wounds (he would be regarded as a legend for withstanding the crushing force of Jeep vs. Deer for the rest of his life, since he became fond of regaling friends with this story whenever he became the slightest bit inebriated) so the delay of help didn't affect him in the slightest. In fact, while Draco was busy pummeling Alex, Bobby was enjoying a nice (albeit slightly uncomfortable) nap in his crushed car.

Alex was no match for Draco. In fact, Hermione could have walloped the boy (as could have Neville Longbottom). War had hardened the young Malfoy heir beyond belief and he had learned to brawl, Muggle style, the hard way. A high school football player and semi-professional heavy weight wrestler, even one who could bench goodness knows how many pounds, stood no match for a true war-hardened Wizard (even one who couldn't use magic at the moment). Needless to say, by the time Alex was truly subdued, half of the crowd discussed the newest matter of gossip in loud voices around the Jeep while the other half of the crowd had dispersed to school to spread the news of the easily angered blonde Brit who was fast to defend his new girl (the gossip from the point of view of the girls was more along the lines of how impressive it was that clumsy Vera had managed to land herself a completely hot piece of British man).

XX

Hope you enjoyed it! :D


	6. VI

Sorry for the short chapter. I'm moving out for college tomorrow so things are pretty hectic (and I still haven't finished packing DX) so I hope you guys forgive me and leave me some reviews to come back to :D

**Chapter Six**

They had barely been in the car for three seconds when Draco spoke up from where he was now sitting in the back seat. "I'm not your bloody boyfriend."

"And I'm not your bloody girlfriend, believe me!" snorted Vera, her eyes firmly fixed on the road. "I wouldn't want to be!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" he snapped indignantly.

"You're a rather grumpy person," retorted Vera. "Plus, I don't particularly like you that way. I mean, you're good looking enough, and you're British, which is dreamy all by itself, but you've got a horrid personality." She was very matter of fact.

"We've barely spoken!" gasped Draco. Hermione suppressed a laugh from where she sat.

"I like her well enough already, and I've barely spoken to her either," retorted Vera, gesturing vaguely in Hermione's direction. "Actually, I've spoken to her less than I've spoken to you."

"_Her_ would like to be left out of this discussion right now," commented Hermione airily from her seat. She couldn't decide if she was amused or annoyed. The thought (and sight) of Draco arguing with a Muggle was absolutely hilarious, but at the same time, she had had a long day. She didn't really want to deal with childishness right now but she didn't seem to have much choice.

"Why were we stuck there for so long anyway?" muttered Draco, sinking further into the leather cushions on his seat. He turned to look out the window, practically pressing his nose into the glass as he watched more and more and more trees go by.

"The paramedics wanted to make sure I'm all right." Vera pulled over to the side of the road as an ambulance sped by, siren blaring.

"You fainted, you didn't get in a bloody car crash. They should have been more focused on the idiot who hit the bloody deer."

"Bobby isn't an idiot," said Vera. "But anyway, he's bizarrely fine, so they didn't really want to concern themselves with him right then, it's too confusing. I'm not even gonna lie, it's the craziest thing I've ever heard about, much less seen. But me, meanwhile. I faint at the sight of an animal carcass up close and personal. That's pretty normal." Draco snorted. Vera spun around to face him for a quarter of a second to shoot him a glare. "In my defense, it took me by surprise."

"Keep your eyes on the road or you'll get us all killed too. The police and paramedics have enough to deal with today already." One more ambulance roared past them at that moment as if to prove him right. "You fainted quite a while after seeing the deer, if I might add. And you owe me your current state of comfort. If I hadn't caught you…"

"Why, thank you, your worshipfulness," Vera rolled her eyes. "I suppose I should owe you my eternal gratitude. Should I do your bidding for a week, My Lord?"

Draco couldn't help but shudder at the sound of the words 'My Lord.' It had been years since anyone had referred to the Dark Lord in that manner, but… the words still bought chills and a feeling of dread into Draco's heart. Realizing he had been silent for an unusually long amount of time, Draco simply snapped, "Merlin, you're bloody annoying." It didn't take much to notice that the response lacked its usual bite.

Even Vera had noticed Draco's momentarily silence, but she was too ticked off to give it much note. "And you're a _bloody_ snob!" she retorted, practically screaming. She slammed on the break just before a stop sign, causing Draco to smack into Hermione's chair in front of his. Hermione had, of course, seen the sign coming, and anticipated the sudden stop.

"I'm _aristocracy_," snapped Draco when he regained his bearings.

"Hmph! Yeah, right! Aristocracy is supposed to be posh and high and handsome and charming." Vera made a left turn.

"I am," retorted Draco.

"No you're not," Vera said.

"I take offense to that. You're a bloody Muggle, who're you to say that!"

"Malfoy!" growled Hermione. Draco blanched.

"The hell's a Muggle?" Vera asked, pulling a face. "It sounds like something you eat. But not gonna lie, I've never heard someone insult someone by calling them a vegetable. Like…" Vera adopted a very mocking British accent. "You're a bloody tomato! … Is it a Brit thing?"

"It's an insult, you can be damned sure of that!" retorted Draco.

"It's actually not…" supplied Hermione helpfully, casting an itching hex at Draco wordlessly. As the blonde twisted uncomfortably in his seat for a few moments before muttering a countercurse, Vera was struggling to come up with an appropriate retort while concentrating on the road.

"Well, you're… you're… you're an asshat!"

"You really like that word, don't you?" laughed Draco.

"I'll have you know that I think it's a very nice word," Vera replied in a snootish voice. She was once again attempting to imitate Draco's accent a little, but more genuinely this time.

"It's idiotic."

"_You're_ idiotic," snapped Vera.

"This verbal banter isn't really your strong suit, now, is it?" Draco smirked.

"Hmph!"

Hermione came to her decision. Amusing had passed a long time ago, and now the two were simply annoying. "Could you two _please_ shut up? It's been a long day and we're all a tad grumpy. So let's just all be _silent_."

For a few moments no one spoke. Vera sighed again. "I really didn't mean it, all right? To be honest, I don't think you have a horrid personality, Draco. Plus, I really don't know you yet. You… not gonna lie, you just seem like a fun person to annoy."

"I'm a fun person to annoy?" said Draco, a bit astonished. "Well, that's rubbish."

"Well," Vera shrugged, "it's true."

It was silent in the car for a bit longer.

"So… Vera…" ventured Hermione cautiously. The petite, dark skinned girl had been spending the last few silent minutes alternating between glaring at the road in front of her and at the speedometer as she fought to drive slowly on the road. Hermione was pretty sure she wasn't irked any more, but she couldn't figure out why Vera still looked so… _angry_.

"Yes, Hermione?" Vera replied, managing not to growl. She was still a little peeved at Draco, after all. He did call her a Muggle. She wasn't sure what it meant, but it apparently was, in Draco's eyes, degrading. But as angry (mildly annoyed) as she was at him, she shouldn't take it out on Hermione.

"What's your schedule for this year? I'm guessing you're a Senior, right? We are too."

"Granger, what the hell?" muttered Draco. "We're not bloody High School Students. Stop pretending. I am an adult and I shall be treated as such." Hermione rolled her light brown eyes and ignored the annoyed Wizard sitting behind her. She was at least happy that he had the presence of mind to keep his voice down around Vera. After his Muggle slip, Hermione wasn't entirely sure.

"Wow, I didn't think you'd actually guess I'm a Senior!" replied Vera, practically bouncing in her seat. In sight of her newfound happiness, her quickly disappearing annoyance at Draco completely vanished. "People usually think I'm much younger. I get Freshman more often than I like to admit, but people mostly do that jokingly now. I know most of the people in this town, although I can't say I like them all, like Sanchez. Not gonna lie, Alex had it coming to him, Draco. Thanks for finally putting him in his place, he needs to shut up. He does this thing where he puts his foot in his mouth a lot, and then beats people up for it. Oh! But I told you how old I am! Oh, gosh, I just remembered that. Well, this is pretty embarrassing. But… you could have thought I was a Junior! I mean, that's possible if I'm seventeen…" Hermione gave a little cough and Vera trailed off with a sheepish grin. "I'm sorry," she said. "I tend to start talking and keep talking, you know? I don't really stop and I tend to ramble…"

Hermione laughed. "That's all right," she said. "I used to do that a lot when I was younger."

Vera snickered. "Younger?" she said with another laugh. "You talk like you're thirty or something!"

"Perceptive," muttered Draco. "Maybe she's not as stupid as I feared." Hermione resisted the urge to toss another jinx back at her companion.

Vera made the turn into the school. "7:59. Damn," she muttered. "Because of all that drama, we're way late. Ah, well. At least I have a reasonable excuse this time. Madam Bitchy-Pants can't argue with 'there was a fricking accident on the facking road and I fucking fainted.' Oh my gosh! I totally forgot to answer your question!" Vera gestured to a bag in the back seat of the car, resting on the cushion next to Draco. "Hermione, if you want to see, my schedule is in the front pocket." Draco pulled the piece of paper out of the green and purple messenger bag. Before handing it to Hermione, he made two duplicates of it and slipped them into his pocket. Hermione scanned the paper and gave it back to Draco. "Hopefully we'll have some classes together," continued Vera. "That would be really awesome. I'll show you guys to the main office before I head off to class."

Vera pulled into one of the many parking lots surrounding the school. Jumping out of the car, she opened the back door to grab her bag. When Hermione and Draco exited the vehicle, she locked the door and led them down the street to a set of two double doors.

"Well," said Vera, shifting back and forth between two feet, "here we are! I'll probably see you guys around! And seriously, Draco. Don't harass anyone about what happened this morning, you'll only make it worse." Vera smirked slightly. "It's like you've never been to a normal high school," she laughed. "Well, see ya guys! I seriously gotta go! Bye!" Vera sprinted down the hall and turned down the hallway. Standing outside the doors to the main office, Draco pulled out the copies he made of Vera's schedule. He tapped them with his wand, changing the name at the top of one from _Vera Malik_ to _Draco Malfoy_ and the other to _Hermione Granger_.

"So?" he said, handing Hermione a counterfeit schedule. "What next?"

Hermione pushed a springy curl back behind her ear. "Time for some foolish wand waving. We have an administrator to confound."

XX

If you made it this far, please leave a review! It would mean a lot to me!


	7. VII

Sorry for the huge delay. Sadly enough, this is only a preview of what's to come. I just started college so I've been going a bit nuts trying to finish all my work and study as well. And, even more sadly, this is the last of my pre-written chapters so that's really a problem… I hope you guys will be patient with me! :)

**Chapter Seven**

Confounding the entire administrative office was laughably easy with Hermione Granger on the mission. With the help of one of her experimental spells, she casted a mass Selective Memory Charm on the entire staff of the school. Everyone in the building who knew the true identity of the transfer students found themselves suddenly baffled when the previous names (Genine Beatty and James Monroe) were replaced with two new ones (Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy). The entire school did a simultaneous double take and in less than a minute, Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy were eighteen year old high school students.

"Right," said Hermione. "Let's get to class now. We'll just pretend that we were assigned all the same classes as Vera and go on like that. No one should really question it."

"Granger, they actually might," said Draco slowly. He held one of the schedules up to Hermione's face. "She's in all Level 1 classes. She's either completely brilliant or idiotically stupid."

"Let's hope for brilliant," retorted Hermione. She began to walk down the hall when a door marked 'Principal's Office' swung open and a tall bald man in a suit almost ran right into Hermione.

"Ah, you must be Miss Granger!" said the man jovially. "I'm Mr. Green, one of the principals at this fine institution. I'm sure you and Mr. Malfoy will love it here at Shawnee High School. Good, you've already gotten your schedules. May I?" Mr. Green held out a hand and Hermione gave him her schedule to look over.

"Draco and I are in all the same classes," she offered helpfully.

Mr. Green let out a low whistle. "Well, that's impressive," he said. "You two are quite intelligent! Hopefully, these classes won't be too much for you. These are actually the highest level classes offered in this school. First period is almost over, there are maybe ten more minutes left. To get to that class, go down this hallway and turn a left. The room number is C116. From there, hopefully you'll find someone in your next class who can tell you where to go. I'm sure you'll be able to find someone helpful. That sound good?"

"Thank you very much," replied Hermione. Mr. Green walked away down the hall, whistling a jovial tune. Hermione turned to Draco. "I told you she was intelligent."

"To be honest, I never remember you mentioning anything of the sort. You simply said you thought she'd be helpful. Nothing you ever said was anything along the lines of 'she is an intelligent person.' You just said that she's probably not dim. Probably." Draco looked smug at this.

"You'd better hope she's not too intelligent for you, Malfoy," retorted Hermione primly. "As I recall, your Muggle education is a bit lacking."

"Well, Granger, you haven't really done much Muggle education yourself."

"I still know this stuff and how it works. To be honest, I also did some side studying at Uni during summers off from Hogwarts. You know, just in case Voldemort destroyed everything and I would need to escape." At the look on Draco's face, Hermione shrugged. "What, it's always good to have a back up plan." Hermione started down the hallway. "We should get moving. I'd hate for us to get expelled on our first day of school."

XX

Hermione and Draco quickly discovered that the C Wing of the school was a circle. It took them a while to locate the door numbers which were on miniscule, barely visible plaques hiding next to lockers. By this time, seven minutes had gone by. Hermione finally located room C116 and stood outside the door with Draco. Through a small window, Hermione could see a grumpy looking woman standing in front of a disgruntled class. The woman had her hair (which was of an indistinguishable color, somewhere between grey and brown but neither at the same time) in a short bob. She wore square rimmed glasses over a slightly hooked nose. Her face had a scowl permanently plastered on it. She was pacing now, up and down in front of the class, while speaking.

Hermione could practically picture billowing robes on her.

"Oh, no, Granger. He wouldn't. I know how Godfather disguises himself, and he would not disguise himself as a woman."

"Well, if he doesn't want to be _found_… wouldn't it make sense that he'd do something unpredictable?"

"There's unpredictable, and then there's absolutely barmy. Godfather would not disguise himself as a woman."

Hermione shrugged once again. "Whatever you say, Malfoy. But I'm keeping my eyes open regardless." Hermione pulled Draco so they were out of view from the window. With two flicks of her wand, she conjured a notebook and pen for each of them along with bags to hold the two. Hermione pulled out the schedule from her pocket and examined it. "All right, this is the best I can do supply-wise for now, so it'll have to do. According to the schedule, this class is 'Honors World Cultures' with Ms. McKenzie. That would be history."

"I just hope she's not as boring as Binns."

Hermione tried to open the door quietly and slide into the room with Draco behind her but her plan was destroyed when the door gave a loud creak. Ms. McKenzie spun around to glare at her two new students.

"What?" she demanded. "Why are you just standing there? Sit down!"

Hermione moved to run to one of the open seats in the back corner of the classroom that Ms. McKenzie pointed to. She was about to sit right behind Vera when a bell rang through the classroom.

"Well, that's it for today class," said Ms. McKenzie. "Hopefully I can actually teach you something tomorrow. I don't need any more students deciding to show up in the middle of my class." She glared at Vera and then Hermione and Draco.

After the teacher's last word, the room emptied in less than a second. It was as if each student was poised on the edge of their desks waiting for the moment they could finally leave.

There were only two students left in the room with Hermione and Draco, Vera and a girl with light brown hair. Vera skipped up to the other two and introduced the girl with her.

"This is Kayla!" said Vera excitedly. "Not even gonna lie, she's the reason I don't fail this class."

At this comment, Kayla laughed and rolled her eyes. "Well, dear, you pay me back. I couldn't pass Calc without you. Speaking of, I should get going. Perkins is giving us a test today and I wanna get there early so she'll give me more time." Kayla walked out of the classroom throwing Vera a backwards wave.

Vera ushered Hermione and Draco out of the room. Before she exited, she turned to face Ms. McKenzie once more. "I'm sorry I was so late today," she said. McKenzie looked up and shockingly smiled, waving Vera away.

"Don't worry about it. Just don't hit any deer on your way to school, hmm?"

Vera grinned and walked out of the class. "So, what do you two have next?" she asked.

"AP Chemistry in Room D203 with Mr. Emir," said Hermione anticipating Vera's next reaction. The girl practically squealed, jumping up and down in joy.

"Oh my gosh! No way! Me too! What a coincidence! Here, I'll show you the way!"

Draco rolled his eyes and hissed, "Of course, _coincidence_," under his breath.

Vera led the two out of the room and turned immediately left back into the C Wing. She then took another left into a side hallway. "This is the hall to the D Wing," she said. She pointed down in front of them as she continued to walk down the hallway. "The D Wing is a semicircle that's around the C Wing. The C Wing is the center of the school. Both the D and C Wings have two floors. Any rooms on the second floor have room numbers starting with 2 instead of 1. Like Chem, Room D203. Got it?" Hermione nodded and Draco did as well, with a slight eye roll. Vera continued without skipping a beat. "As I said, the C Wing is the center of the school. On one side of it, you have the D Wing which is a semicircle. On the other side are the A Wing and the B Wing. The A Wing has the main office and the cafeteria. The door you entered through is in the A Wing, although you guys were probably too disoriented by the endless C Wing to figure that out. The B Wing is attached to the A Wing and has the Home Ec classes and the gym. The A Wing is attached to the D Wing only on the first floor by the F Wing. The F Wing has the Auditorium and a couple of music and art rooms. Not gonna lie, you're gonna be confused as hell for the first couple days but you'll get the hang of it pretty quick!"

They had reached the end of the hallway and Vera proceeded to go up a set of stairs and turn left once she reached the top. "This is the upper D Wing. It houses a few World Language classes, but it's mostly for Science. For example, those are the two rooms that are only for Physics," she pointed to the first two rooms on the left, "not to worry though. We're going to Chem, and this class is super easy. The only struggle is to stay awake. I swear, it's like Emir is _trying_ to put us to sleep." She skidded to a halt in front of a tiny crowd of kids waiting at the door to room D203. "Here we are!" she said in a sing-song voice.

"Vera did you do the homework?" A boy ran up to Vera and practically shouted the words in her face. "I seriously need it. And you owe me for the lab report last week and…" Vera cut his words off by pulling out a sheet of paper.

"Quickly!" she said. "I really don't want to get in trouble for you."

"Ha ha ha," said the boy. "You wouldn't pass this class without me!"

"She doesn't seem to be able to pass _any_ class on her own," Draco said to Hermione.

"I heard that," snorted Vera. "And that's not true, really. I just don't do homework. I don't like it, it's a waste of my time. Homework should be used for students who don't know the material to practice it over and over again. Homework should not be enforced for perfectly competent students who get perfect scores on tests without doing the homework. I hate getting penalized for it when I know the information. Doing homework is just a waste of my time." Hermione's jaw was dropped open. Even after all these years, she loved homework. Vera, oblivious to Hermione's horror, continued speaking. "Anyway, this is James." She pointed to the boy frantically copying the homework assignment. "We… 'work together' to get our homework done in Chem and Calc."

There was a sudden scramble around the halls and James practically threw the worksheet back at Vera, who stuffed it into her bag. Mr. Emir walked up to the door and opened it to let all the students file in behind him. Vera ushered Draco and Hermione into seats behind her and James.

As she settled into her seat, Vera got her first glimpse of Mr. Emir. He was an older man, but his exact age was indecipherable. His face appeared to be young, though his hair was the silvery white of one who has seen many years. His skin was lightly tanned, and his eyes were a merry blue with a twinkle in them that reminded Hermione of Dumbledore. Hermione found her eyes naturally drawn to his nose. Although Emir's nose wasn't as prominent as Snape's, it was still obviously hooked and definitely Roman in style. Maybe…

James tossed a little note onto Vera's desk, a motion that didn't go unnoticed by Mr. Emir. Instead of reacting with the biting retort and point taking that Professor Snape would have used, Mr. Emir merely rolled his eyes and smiled good naturedly at the two students. Hermione sighed. Clearly off base with that one.

Or maybe…

XX

And there you go! If you got this far, please review! I'll take the bad along with the good, just let me know what you think :)


	8. VIII

All right, sorry for the super, super long wait. Again, I have no more pre-written chapters and also no more time because of college, but I'm not going to abandon this story. Like, seriously. People will actually kill me if I do (you know who you are).

For: Project PULL

**Chapter Eight**

"And that's it for today, class. Don't forget to turn in your homework tomorrow, as some of you," Mr. Emir looked at Vera, who grinned and waved, "have been slacking off. See you tomorrow!"

Hermione jumped up from her desk, jolted out of her semi-nap by Emir's announcement. She blearily looked around the room as students began to rouse themselves from similar naps and grab their belongings. In front of her, James was shaking his head to remove the last bit of sleepiness that remained and Vera was standing in the aisle between the desks and stretching like a cat that just woke from a very satisfying nap.

A muffled curse caused Hermione to look at Draco. He groaned as he pulled himself out of the desk. "These monstrosities are not comfortable at all," he muttered. "Especially not for naps."

"Did I… fall asleep?" said Hermione cautiously. Because there was absolutely no way she…

"You were out in a second," said Vera with a smile. Hermione's mouth dropped open and she started to sputter. "Don't worry, it's not you. I can stay away more than most, but not by much. Emir is notoriously boring. He's the sweetest teacher I know, but… his voice just has this particular _tone_ that just makes you fall straight asleep. I, for one, have managed to overcome it slightly."

"Tell me about it," said Hermione with a sigh. "But I feel horrid. I've never, _ever_ fallen asleep in a class before. I… I should apologize to him."

"It's really no big deal," said James, now fully awake once more. "Just be glad it wasn't a double period though. Those are fun."

Hermione sighed but turned around when she heard muffled laughter. Draco was quite literally hunched over convulsing with laughter, propping himself up on one of the spindly desks. Hermione glared at him.

"What?" he managed. "You fell asleep in a class. You've got to admit that it's just a little bit funny."

Hermione rolled her eyes and picked up her books. "Draco and I have Physical Education next," she managed before Vera erupted into glee once more.

"This is so exciting!" she practically shrieked, bouncing in place. "Okay, lets go!"

"You guys go on," said Hermione. "I really do need to apologize to Mr. Emir for falling asleep…"

"You're a good person," said Vera. "Most don't bother. Okay, to get to the gym, just turn left out of this room, and the left at the stairs we came up. Go down that hall, turn right and walk partway around the circle and take the first set of stairs on the right. Then, walk down that hallway and the gym will be on your right. Got it?"

"Not really," said Hermione with a smile.

"You'll be fine," replied Vera. "You seem moderately smart, I'm sure you'll figure it out. Right, lets get going you two!"

Draco gave Hermione a questioning look and she motioned for him to go with the other two. With a shrug, Draco walked out of the room following Vera as she kept on talking without a breath.

By this time, the room was completely empty. Hermione hadn't had time to look around when she'd first gotten in, and she realized now that the room was actually the size of two typical classrooms. In the front half, desks had been arranged into five rows of five. They faced the front of the room that had a desk a computer and a dry-erase board. The second half of the room was largely dominated by three long lab tables. Mr. Emir was at the central lab table, sprinkling baking soda on what appeared to be a puddle of acid.

Hermione quickly picked up her notebook and pencil and moved to stand next to Emir. "Professor?" she ventured when he didn't look up.

Emir looked up and smiled warmly at her. "I'm not a Professor," he said. "Just call me Mr. Emir. You must be Miss. Granger. Welcome to Medford, how are you liking it here?"

"Honestly?" Hermione said as she shifted her grip on her notebook. "It's been really hectic so far, so I haven't had a chance to decide quite yet. But I'd like to apologize for falling asleep in your class. I'm still a bit jet lagged and…"

"No matter," said Emir, quickly cutting her off. "It's perfectly fine. Now, get going to your next class or you're going to be very late!"

Hermione smiled and headed out of the room, carefully weaving between the desks. The minute she was out of sight, Mr. Emir's kind smile instantly disappeared to be replaced with a frown.

XX

Draco followed Vera and James through some random twists and turns in the halls. After what seemed like a maze, Vera waved bye to him.

"Where are you going?" he demanded as she began to walk through a door. "Didn't you say that we have gym _together_?"

Vera laughed and rolled her eyes. "Did you go to some private boarding school or something? We always change clothes for gym. This is the girls locker room, you're not allowed in. Unless, of course, you're…"

Draco's glare at Vera did little to intimidate her. Instead, she laughed more and waved bye to him once more. James waved his hand in front of his face and motioned him to follow. They walked the entire length of the gym to the locker rooms at the very end.

"The guys locker room is over here," said James. "Did you bring gym clothes for today?" He opened the door and ushered Draco in.

"No," said Draco. "I had no idea I would even be here." He stepped into the locker room and cringed as he was hit with the mixed smell of body odor and excessive amounts of cologne.

XX

It took her nearly fifteen minutes, but Hermione finally found her way to the gym. She stepped inside to see Vera waving her over from the back corner. Hermione stepped up to the girl who then guided her through a hallway to another miniature gym in the back of the building.

"Not bad for your first try getting here," said Vera happily. "I guessed you didn't have gym clothes and since you didn't know your schedule before hand, Ms. Breeze won't take points off today. But don't forget to bring gym clothes tomorrow."

"Gym clothes?" said Hermione blankly.

"Athletic clothes to wear during gym?" retorted Vera. "Seriously, it's like you've never been to public school."

"I haven't," said Hermione as they stepped through a pair of doors and began to head across a large field. The class was all the way on the other side. She could make out Draco's blonde hair.

"Woah, really?" gasped Vera. "That's so cool! So, were you homeschooled or what?"

"I went to a boarding school in Scotland. That's actually where I met Draco."

"That sounds pretty awesome!" said Vera. "You know, we actually have a teacher who used to work in Scotland."

Hermione's eyes widened. No way. It wasn't possible. He couldn't be that sloppy. He would _never_ be that sloppy.

"Who is it?" she managed, trying to hide her expression. "Who's the teacher?"

"It's Mr. Emir."

XX

All right folks! That's it for now. I intended to make this longer, but my fingers are numb now so… :D Sorry for the one (who knows who she is) whom I told this would be longer. But seriously, I'll try to update in the middle of this week as well XD Please leave me a review, I'd really appreciate it (and it motivates me like nothing else possibly can)!


	9. IX

**Words: 1102**

**XX**

Hermione managed to hide her incredulity. There was no way that Snape would be so… sloppy. He couldn't have possibly made such an amateur mistake. Then again, it had been ten _years_. Could he have possibly thought he was in the clear?

Noticing that Vera was waiting for Hermione to say something, she cleared her throat and hastily spoke. "Um, speaking of Em…" her voice cracked, "_Emir_, what did he actually teach in his class today?"

Vera shrugged and twisted a curl of her hair around her finger with her left hand. "I'm not exactly sure," she said, staring off at the wall as they walked by.

"What do you mean?" retorted Hermione. "You were awake during that class!"

Vera rolled her eyes and laughed. "I know I was, silly!" she grinned. "But to be honest, that doesn't make much of a difference in his class. It's like you're in this trance whether you're awake or not."

Hermione was so deep in thought with the new information she had just acquired that she didn't even notice that they had stepped outside. Halfway across the soccer field behind the school, a chilly breeze struck Hermione causing her to wrap her arms around herself and shiver. It was only then she noticed that they were heading over to a group of around thirty students standing on the edge of a baseball field beyond the soccer one. She could clearly make out Draco's blond hair, practically reflecting sunlight across the field.

A large woman in a bright pink shirt waved at Vera and hollered, "Run!" in a thunderous voice that echoed across the field. Vera gave Hermione and rueful look and began to jog towards the rest of the class, her converse kicking up little bits of turf. Hermione groaned and began to run as well, thankful for the practical trainers she had chosen to wear. After a few agonizing moments of breathlessness, she skid to a halt between Vera and Draco clutching a stitch at her side. It had been years since she had willingly run, and only then with Voldemort's followers on her trail. Hermione decided that it probably wasn't a good idea to use that excuse on Ms. Breeze.

Ms. Breeze spoke up. "Now that you've finished all your warm ups, we're going to begin the baseball unit today. I trust all of you know how to play?" she said with a sarcastic roll of her eyes. Hermione bit back a groan at Draco's clueless face and hasty nod. It was like the passports all over again.

Needless to say, the game was amusing. Draco, Vera, and James were all on one team while Vera was the other team with two girls who were friends with Vera. One was a bubbly, competitive blonde girl named Holly who was recently dating James. The other girl, who looked like a taller and older version of Vera, was named Nada and couldn't for her life understand how Holly was able to put up with James.

Hermione quickly discovered that the two had no qualms laughing at Draco with her when he tried to put the glove on his opposite hand. They also had no qualms at laughing at Vera when she took an overenthusiastic swing at the baseball and ended up spinning in a circle twice before landing on her bum. They also had no qualms laughing at Hermione when she ran into another girl in the class in an attempt to actually catch the ball (she didn't catch it).

Before she knew what was happening, Hermione found herself forgetting the facts she had learned earlier about Emir. Somehow, they ended up getting shoveled into the very back of her mind.

XX

Strange noises coming from the Chemistry room was nothing new. After all, everyone knew that Chemistry was a dangerous subject. One never knew what a certain combination would yield. But this was a school environment and the Chemistry teacher was very certified. All was well. Certainly.

Everyone stayed a few extra feet from the door though. Just in case.

XX

Vera had another fit of excitement when she found that Draco and Hermione were both in AP Statistics with her. She informed them that there was (sadly) an exam in the class today, so they were free to do as they pleased. The Statistics teacher, an overweight but kind woman who went by Ms. Shormage let Draco and Hermione sit together in the corner of the classroom.

"This is only temporary," she confided. "When we resume class tomorrow, you and Draco can sit with Vera and the rest of her friends." She gestured to three students sitting near Vera: a boy with curly blond hair hunched over his desk, a brunette girl with bushy curls, and a girl with light brown hair that reached the floor. "Feel free to talk quietly right now, but if any of the students complain, I'm afraid you'll need to stop."

Hermione whispered a quiet thank you and Ms. Shormage returned to her desk. She had barely walked away when Draco elbowed her. He cast a quick silencing spell and hissed at her. "I'm sick of being in school! That last class was absolutely humiliating!"

"We can't leave, Draco!" returned Hermione with an equally determined tone. "I can feel it, Snape is here!"

Draco snorted and leaned back in his chair. He stretched his legs out to use Hermione's chair as a footrest and spoke once more. "Of course he's here," he said skeptically. "Severus hated teaching. He'd definitely try to escape his old life only to return to teaching once more. Why doesn't that make sense?"

Hermione sighed. "Draco, I don't think he hated teaching." Draco bit back a laugh. Upon noticing Hermione's dead-serious expression, he raised an eyebrow. "I think he just hated the students. No one gave him any respect in Hogwarts, only fear. I think he'd like to be in an environment where he could spread knowledge to kids who actually _wanted_ the knowledge he has to offer."

"Since when did you know my Godfather so well?" said Draco with a joking grin.

Hermione shrugged. "Well, I know that I would hate to teach kids with no interest or respect for the subject I was trying to teach."

"Well," Draco sat up so he was leaning forward on the desk. "Do you have any proof?"

"I…" Hermione groaned and shook her head. "I thought I did but… I… It's the strangest thing… I can't seem to remember…"

Hermione massaged her head as she fought to remember and Draco leaned back in his chair, deep in thought.

**XX**

_Project PULL_

_Almost like a novel – multi-chapter-story-challenge – hand _

_The Inspiration Challenge – trust _

Thanks for all of you who've been sticking with me for this fic! Please leave a review, it would mean the world to me :)


	10. X

**Words: 1440**

**XX**

The forty-two minutes that comprised of 'Advanced Placement Statistics' seemed to crawl by at a miniscule place as Hermione continued to massage her temples. She stared blankly at the back of the head of the student sitting in front of her. He had given up on his test mere minutes after he looked at it and was now leaning back in his chair and humming under his breath. The chair in question was a rickety metal number that looked a bit too perilous for Hermione's tastes.

She couldn't understand what was the matter. She knew, _knew_, that there was something she had learned – something very important – but she couldn't on her life remember what it was.

Sunlight glinted through the shutters on the window as Hermione continued to think. Something was very, very wrong in this town. She knew that for sure. Tricking the administration had been easy, _too_ easy. Magical theory was rather spilt on the effects of multiple Oblivations and other magics of similar variety. One side stated that those who had been Confounded or Oblivated frequently were more susceptible to the effects of the spell in question if used multiple times. That being said, the only logical possibility was that the administration and members of the school had been confounded multiples times in order to make them succumb to the spell so easily.

Adding to that the fact that this was a school, Snape had to be here. It was almost certain. If he was going to disappear, he still needed to make a living. And what better way for a former teacher to earn his way than to continue being a teacher?

But what struck Hermione as odd was that the other branch of theory regarding Confounding had also been addressed. The policeman. He had fallen for her spell the first time, when she had convinced him to not ask for her license, but had been almost completely immune to her spell when she tried to regain possession of her car.

This town had been exposed to a lot of magic. That was the only explanation. So Severus Snape had to be here, as she had found with her spell.

But why did she get the feeling that she had already found him? And why couldn't she remember where?

XX

After Vera reacted with the same bouncy cheer to know that they were in the same class next (lunch), the three of the headed down to lunch. Vera led them through a crowded hallway and pulled them to the side by a row of lockers.

"Sorry," she said as she turned the dial on one of them, quickly opening the contraption, "I'm always late for lunch since I stop by at my locker. I just don't have any other chance to get my books for the rest of the day and it's a serious pain to carry them around the entire time." She deposited a bag on her shoulder into the locker. "Gym clothes," she elaborated when she noticed Hermione's questioning look. "I obviously don't need them for the rest of the day. Speaking of, don't forget to bring a set tomorrow along with sneakers, both of you."

Draco nodded from his position against the neighboring locker. He watched the kids in the hallway rush to classes and stop to talk to their friends at the corners. He noticed suddenly that their little trio had gained two new companions. One was a girl with dark hair who was looking at Draco and Hermione with confusion as Vera handed her a stack of books to hold and the other was a boy with lighter brown hair who looked mildly amused.

"You must be Vera's new boyfriend," said the boy with a grin. "The whole school's talking about you." Upon hearing these words, Draco scowled more.

"She's not my…"

He never got a chance to finish his statement because out of nowhere, a book sailed past him and hit the boy upside the head.

"Shut it, Rich!" snapped Vera, who had her hands on her hips and was wearing an annoyed expression. "He's not my boyfriend!"

The girl piped up. "Wish he was," she said. "He's pretty cute."

Draco sputtered. Hermione laughed. Vera grinned.

"Funny, Dori!" she retorted, rolling her eyes. She looked at her two friends. "This is Hermione and this is Draco. They're the transfer students and we've got lunch together so they're gonna sit with us. And these guys," Vera turned to face the others, "are my friends, Rich and Dori."

Hermione smiled and said hello. Draco scowled more. Hermione elbowed him. He muttered hello.

"Right, let's go!" Vera said, closing her locker with a resounding slam. "I'm starving!"

"Don't order a chicken parm by accident, dear!" Dori chortled. The three started laughing leaving Hermione and Draco to ponder the nature of chicken parm and it's hilarity.

XX

The cafeteria was a loud, brightly lit room that was filled with a ridiculous number of students. It would have been reminiscent of the Great Hall of Hogwarts with the exception of a few facts.

For starters, since the school was a decidedly Muggle establishment, the ceiling was just a ceiling and remained boring and un-bewitched. For the students who were so inclined to look away from their food and up at the ceiling, they would be greeted by a collection of harsh artificial lighting and solid white plaster.

Secondly, the food did not appear on each individual table. For Hermione, who had attended Muggle schools prior to Hogwarts, this was normal. The idea that she had to go and select her own food was understandable. For Draco, who had been surrounded by magic all his life, this concept was odd. Of course, he had experienced a true cafeteria at the Ministry, but this was a school and therefore different in his mind.

Additionally, the tables in the room were randomly arranged. There was a collection of long tables that seemed to be located at the back wall, and then a collection of many round tables scattered around the room. A mini hallway seemed to lead to even more tables, while a little courtyard was between the two rooms of tables. It was understandably deserted because of the cold.

Vera led the two to a table where she deposited her bag next to a chair. Rich sat down on her left and Dori placed her bags next to the chair on the right. At a nod from Vera, Hermione placed her notebook at a spot on the other side of the table and Draco grudgingly did the same.

"Granger, can we _please_ get out of here?"

"I'm starving, Malfoy. Let's at least get food."

Rich remained at the table, taking out a bagged lunch, while Vera and Dori led their way to the lunch line. Once they were in line, Dori spun on her friend. "So what happened? What the hell is going on with all… this?" she said, gesturing widely around the two.

Vera placed her hand on her chin as if in deep though. "Oh, I know!" she said suddenly, pointing a ringed finger at Draco. "This guy got into a fist fight, I found the transfer students camping in front of the Bagel Shop, Nikki sleepwalked into the bathroom this morning and scared me shitless, and I really don't want to go to English!"

Dori raised an eyebrow and grinned. "Right," she retorted and turned her attention to Draco. She opened her mouth to speak to him, but upon noticing his surly expression, turned to Hermione anyway.

"So you're a transfer student, right?" she asked.

"Yes…?" ventured Hermione.

"Why would you _ever_ pick Medford as a place to study? It's so random!"

"Uh… I…" Hermione sputtered. She hadn't really thought of an appropriate response when Draco spoke up.

"Granger messed up our forms. We wanted to study in New York but we accidentally ended up here."

Vera and Dori snickered at the comment. "You don't seem the type to make a mistake like that, Hermione!" said Vera between her laughs.

Hermione just sighed.

"Oh!" said Vera suddenly. "Do you guys have lunch money?"

"Lunch costs extra money?" blanched Draco.

"Obviously," retorted Vera. "Been living under a rock? Oh, right, boarding school!"

And suddenly, Hermione remembered two very important facts. First and foremost, she was certain that Vera, whether consciously or not, knew who Snape was masquerading around as. And secondly, and perhaps more importantly in their current situation, she had left her purse with all of her money in their confiscated car.

They needed to pay a visit to the police station, and fast.

**XX**

_52 Weeks of Writing 2013 – sleepwalking, sunlight_

_Almost like a novel – multi-chapter-story-challenge – ring _

_Ultimate Doctor Who Episode Competition – 5.3 Victory of the Daleks – Write about someone disguising themselves_

I'm so sorry I was MIA for so long! Exams hit me hard and they just never ended :( But the good news is that I'm back and I will be updating frequently since I've signed up for _52 Weeks of Writing 2013_. So basically you'll be getting a chapter a week! :D Thanks for sticking with me, guys! I do promise, this story shall never be abandoned!


	11. XI

**Words: 867**

**XX**

Medford was a quiet suburb, full of trees and bored teenagers and gossipy old women. It was a quiet and sleepy place and as such, didn't really have much in the ways of a 'bad part of town'. There were, obviously, darker parts of town, but these parts weren't dark because of anything actually threatening. They simply didn't have streetlights.

In one of these unlit parts of town, there was a house that everyone seemed to ignore. Now, this was very strange because although the people who lived in Medford tended towards the rich and spoiled portion of the spectrum, they certainly were not rude. In fact, they were regarded as one of the most neighborly towns in the state which was why this house was quite peculiar. When the two inhabitants of the house – a woman with her red hair up in a stern bun and a dark-haired man in a strange robe – arrived in town unacknowledged and rendered this house nonexistent, it set off warning bells.

Sadly for the town, the only person who would notice these warning bells lived on the opposite side of the town. So business continued on this street like normal with eyes flicking from Number 11 to Number 15 without ever questioning why there wasn't a Number 13 anymore.

As far as Number 13, it was a relatively normal house. If one could see it, they wouldn't notice anything particularly remarkable about it. In fact, it was unnaturally unremarkable. The door was the same red as the doors of Number 11 and Number 15. Its walls were made of the same plaster that was ever so slightly not white it made guests always look twice. The roof was the same black paneling. The windows (of which there were ten) were covered by the same plain shutters that existed on every house of that street. The grass was the same perfectly manicured green carpet. But the one thing that made this house unique was the feeling. Every time someone walked by, they would get the strangest feeling of being watched. Never mind that they couldn't see the house, but they just _knew_. And they were right.

On the first floor of the house sat the woman in a chair staring out of the leftmost window day and night without end.

Now, this house wouldn't have gotten any acknowledgement if it wasn't for the fact that at the post office this morning, a very irate delivery woman looked over her run. This delivery woman, a Miss Irene Alderman, had been running this morning course for the last thirty-seven years of her woefully lonesome life. She knew the street like the back of her hand. She knew that Number 13 didn't exist.

After complaining to her boss and receiving a noncommittal shrug in reply, she heaved a giant sigh and climbed into her truck. She saved the two confusing pieces of post for last, of course. Why question something that didn't make sense?

But she found herself on the road, parked right in front of Number 13, her eyes going from 11 to 15 and she swore. Shrugging off the prickly feeling of being watched, she marched out of her house and put the two pieces of mail right on the property line between Number 11 and Number 15. With that, she scampered back into her truck as quickly as she could and gunned away down the street. She wouldn't be delivering anything else to that not-actually-a-house any time soon.

The truck had barely skidded around the corner before the door was slamming open to reveal the dark-haired man. "I told you there was post for us!" he shouted over his shoulder. He stomped down the stairs and down the path, eyeing the two envelopes on the ground with suspicion. Pulling a narrow stick out of his clothing, he began to move it in intricate patterns and chant in Latin. With each pause in his chanting, he grew more and more suspicious.

The woman had appeared at the door. "I really don't think it's cursed. That filthy Muggle delivered it, she wouldn't know how to hurt us even if she knew we existed."

"But if _he_ got to it…"

"If he knew we were here, the consequences would be more obvious than some hexed post. We've been careful. There's no need to be so paranoid." She crossed her arms and glared at the man. "Now pick up the damned post and come back inside!" She turned abruptly on her heel and marched back into the darkness of the house.

Grumbling, the man bent down and picked up the two pieces of mail. Without looking at the writing on the envelopes, he turned and walked into the house. Shutting the door behind him, he deposited the post onto a small table in the foyer.

If he hadn't set them onto the table upside down, he might have noticed the names on the envelope faster. On the rickety table inside Number 13, next to two used cigarettes, a withered lily, and an ornate antique knife lay two letters postmarked _Shawnee High School_. They were addressed to a _Miss __Hermione Granger_ and a _Mister Draco Malfoy_.

**XX**

_52 Weeks of Writing 2013 – tie, fiction, mirror, green, OPTIONAL – old movies, vines, dragon, flame, teddy bear, birth, grave, alcohol, 'What the…'_

_Almost like a novel – multi-chapter-story-challenge – knife _

_As Strong As We Are United – darkness _

I apologize for the super short chapter but (the good news is that) this is going to be the first chapter of a chapter spam this weekend, so get psyched :D


	12. XII

**Words: 1154**

**XX**

The final bell of the day rang and Hermione reluctantly followed Vera to her car. The day she had spent back in school had been strangely exhilarating. She didn't realize how much she missed learning, although most of the information she absorbed wasn't very useful in her profession. It had been a much-appreciated diversion from the constant stress of her work and the hopeless mission that she had embarked on. As she picked he way across a small island of trees that separated the parking lot that housed Vera's car from the rest of the school, Hermione longed to sprint back into the building and sit through another period of Latin II.

It wasn't like Hermione to give up, but something about the entire situation gave her the impression that she should have succeeded by now. The entire town screamed magical influence, so at the very least, Snape could have the decency to just show up and announce that yes, he was here, thank you very much. She had found him. She knew she had. And now… Hermione Granger did not like failure. She did not like to lose. And hell, she didn't have her luggage or her purse or anything of help besides Draco and honestly, he was just spending his time scowling, but she wouldn't give up.

"Hey, Hermione!" Vera was suddenly in front of her, waving her hands in her face. "You all right there?" she asked. "You totally zoned for a bit." Hermione nodded. "Well, I was just telling grumpy here," Vera pointed at the irritated blond, "that I've got Musical practice soon. But I've got just enough time to drop you two off at the station and then I can head back up here real speedy-like. Is that okay?"

"Yes, thank you," replied Hermione. "It's really nice of you to do all this for us."

"Eh," Vera waved her off, "it's no big deal. Honestly, I've had a pretty great day. If I hadn't stopped to pick you guys up, I would have had to sit through all of World Cultures!" Vera grinned widely at Hermione's appalled expression. "Only joking. But that class is seriously horrific."

Hermione quickly slipped into the passenger seat next to Vera causing Draco to grumble even more as he plopped unceremoniously into the back seat. The dark-haired girl plugged her phone into the car and turned on some music.

"You don't mind, do you?" she asked her two passengers.

Hermione shook her head a negative.

"If it'll keep her quiet, I'm golden," muttered Draco under his breath. Vera had the sense not to retort, although she did roll her eyes. She stretched her arms over her head causing her shoulders to both crack, and then shifted the car into reverse. As she pulled out of the school, she began to hum along with the music almost unconsciously.

Satisfied that Vera was sufficiently distracted, Draco mumbled a Muffliato Charm and began to whine.

"Granger, this is ridiculous!" he said. "I can't believe we've just wasted an entire day. Honestly, I'm going to lose my mind here. If we don't find my godfather fast, I might just go insane. No, I will go insane."

"It's really not that bad," replied Hermione, watching the trees speed by outside. They had just turned back onto the road with the deer from the morning. The site of the accident was thankfully cleaned completely with no evidence of the misfortune that had occurred there previously.

Draco scoffed. "Just because you're in love with school doesn't mean I have to be like that too."

"I'm not _in love_ with school."

"Don't deny it, Granger. You were seriously drooling in that last class. What was it? Latin or some other nonsense?"

"I'll have you know that Latin is very interesting! It's actually quite relevant for a Wizard to know all about the language. Most spells are Latin based and you can create quite a few new spells with just the right words in Latin. Of course, you need to combine your words with proper wand movements and advanced magical theory but in _principle_…"

"Please stop. I'm so exhausted and I've got a bloody headache from all that prattling that the teachers did."

"They're _supposed_ to lecture. It's their _job_."

"Yes, well, I'm _supposed_ to find Severus, but look at me! Back in a bloody school! It's not my damn job to prance around a forest town and have a scholarly party with children!"

"Well, you're being childish."

"Well, you're being… _you_!"

"Was that an insult? You've really gotten bad at this."

"I'm just taking it easy on you, Granger. Wouldn't want you to burst into tears in front of Chatty here." Vera, who had been steadily humming through their entire quasi argument, still remained completely oblivious to their conversation. She had begun to tap out a rhythm on the steering wheel with her fingers, her scarlet nail polish gleaming in the sunlight, while bobbing her head to the beat. Hermione thought she looked happy. Draco thought she looked ridiculous.

Draco sighed. "I just thought this would be easier, that's all."

"Don't tell me you're fed up already."

"I… we should have found him already!"

"It's been one day."

"I know," moaned Draco. "A whole entire bloody day! Gone!"

"I don't know," said Hermione slowly. "I think this has been nearly _too_ easy until now."

"What? But we didn't even find him! We don't even have a place to start!"

"I know but…" Hermione's voice trailed off. "For starters, I could have sworn he was in that school. If Snape really didn't want to be found, he wouldn't be this obvious about all the magic surrounding this place. It's almost like he's leaving us a trail."

"If he is, it's a horrible one. I can't find it."

"I don't mean to sound self-absorbed, but I think it's for me."

He snorted.

She continued. "Also, Snape would have placed his house under a Fidelius Charm. It's the only way he could have avoided your elf, like you told me all those years ago. But now, for some reason, it's gone. He must have ended the charm, otherwise my tracking spell wouldn't have been able to find him here. I don't know, something about this entire situation isn't exactly right. It's like he's asking us to find him right now, begging us, almost."

"But why would he do that? He left willingly. He can always just come back."

"I don't think it's in his nature to second guess himself, even if it's about something silly like a decision to leave England. But I think he's unhappy now and he was hoping someone would come looking."

"So it's his bloody pride, again?" said Draco with a scowl. "This is ridiculous."

"I hope it's just his pride," said Hermione slowly, "because if he has a _real_ reason for not being able to return to England, I'm scared."

**XX**

_52 Weeks of Writing 2013 – __diversion, dangerous, fed up_

_As Strong As We Are United – scarlet_

So maybe not a *weekend* chapter spam, but it will be a chapter spam. Get ready for word vomit like you've never seen (or will ever see) from me before! :D


	13. XIII

**Words: 1003**

**XX**

The police station was, ironically enough, right across the street from the bagel shop of the morning. The quickly jumped out of the car, grabbing their transfigured supplies, and waved a goodbye to Vera as she sped back up the road they had just come down. With a sigh, Hermione turned on her heel and marched into the office.

The building was tiny and silent as a grave. There was a nondescript desk in the room, with nondescript chairs against one wall. Behind the desk sat a nondescript policewoman. She looked up as Hermione and Draco entered the deserted room and followed them with her eyes as they walked up to her. She remained stubbornly silent as she waited for one of them to speak.

"Hi," said Hermione cheerily. "I need to recover my car. It was taken this morning by Officer Sanders. It's a rental from the airport."

The woman raised an eyebrow. "I'm afraid that isn't possible, Ma'am."

The tip of her wand poked out of Hermione's sleeve and she waved it slightly was casting a silent memory charm. "The officer said it wouldn't be a problem at all," she mumbled as the woman's eyes unfocused.

"Right… of course…" She unlocked a drawer with a key that she wore around her neck and pulled out the car keys. "The car is parked out back… have a nice day?"

Hermione smiled as Draco snorted. "We will, thank you!"

They exited the building and rounded the corner and Hermione heaved a giant sigh of relief at the sight of their car. "Thank goodness," she mumbled, quickly running up to it and unlocking the truck. After ensuring that all their luggage was still present, she recovered her bag and slipped into the drivers seat. She tossed the bag onto Draco's lap.

"Get my wallet out of there, please," she said. "I'm tired and I'm starving. Let's eat."

Draco rolled his eyes and mumbled a protest, but opened the bag. His startled expression as his arm sunk into the bag to his elbow caused Hermione to let out a burst of laughter. She started up the engine as Draco continued to mutter under his breath while digging through the bag. Hermione turned back onto the road in the direction of the school. Before reaching the five-way intersection, she pulled into a little shopping center on the right-hand side and parked outside a restaurant named "Rustic Grille." Jumping out of the car to ensure her parking job was correct, Hermione motioned to Draco who dragged himself out of the passenger seat. He tossed her the bag and her wallet.

"How are we going to pay for food?" he asked as they walked across the parking lot.

Hermione stepped up onto the curb and snorted. "Unlike you, I had the presence of mind to plan," she retorted. "I've got American money with me, it's why I needed my wallet."

In a random act of chivalry, Draco darted up onto the curb before Hermione and held the door open for her.

"Thanks," she said, a little shocked by his behavior.

"Give me some credit, Granger," he retorted. "I'm not a complete buffoon. Malfoy men are raised to be chivalrous." He raised an eyebrow and smirked as she rolled her eyes in response and entered the quaint little diner.

The restaurant was very tiny and homey, sporting about twenty tables all together. On the left-hand wall was a counter with a cashier standing next to a display of food. Windows behind the counter gave way to the hustle and bustle of the kitchen as waiters and waitresses in black polo shirts with "Rustic Grille" emblazoned on the pocket hustled by with menus and trays of food and drink. Despite the time, the place was packed.

"Welcome to Rustic Grille," said a cheery voice. A tall, brown-haired woman sporting an employee polo stood before them. "Feel free to sit anywhere. Your waiter will bring you a menu."

Hermione smiled and wandered to the back end of the building, choosing a cozy booth that overlooked the parking lot. Within moments, another woman – this one with red hair – had placed menus before them.

"Hi, my name is Annie, I'll be your server today," she said with a grin. "Call me over when you're ready to order. If you want, I can take orders for drinks right now."

"That'd be nice," said Hermione. "I'll have a lemonade."

"I'll have a water."

The waitress smiled and nodded, turning on her heel towards the kitchen.

After a few minutes, the duo ordered food and settled down at the table in companionable silence. They took the time to attempt to catch up on their lives for the last few years, Hermione talking about her apprenticeship at Hogwarts and Draco discussing his ministry work and attempts to restore the Malfoy name.

At some point, Hermione dozed off and was roused by the appearance of her Baked Rigatoni. She dug into the large portion and shocked herself with the speed that she finished it.

Draco, of course, was watching the entire affair with amusement. He dug into his Chicken Parmesan with much more restraint, although he managed to finish the dish before Hermione. By the time Annie returned with the bill, the two had succumbed to a food coma, their drowsiness and exhaustion from the plane ride finally getting the best of them.

Hermione roused herself from the comfortable booth to walk to the cashier with Draco lethargically following. She hastily paid and the two returned to the car. She put the keys into the ignition and turned out of the parking lot, heading back in the direction of the school. They drove for a few moments in silence, the tall trees speeding past their vehicle. Draco was counting the cars that passed them when he was stuck by an alarming thought.

"Granger?" he remarked, turning to face the bushy-haired witch whose eyes were glued on the road before them.

"Hmm?"

"Where are we staying?"

**XX**

_52 Weeks of Writing 2013 –__ tired_

_As Strong As We Are United – __lemonade _

Sorry for the filler-ish chapter!

So maybe not a *weekend* chapter spam, but it will be a chapter spam. Get ready for word vomit like you've never seen (or will ever see) from me before! :D Hopefully, one chapter a day for this week, and then weekly updates :)

Please leave a review, and follow the fic. It would mean a lot!


	14. XIV

**Words: 1198**

**XX**

She didn't reply to him for a few minutes, choosing to continue driving down the tree lined road while he fidgeted and tried to restrain the urge to nag her. Of course, he didn't really _need_ to be silent. He was just… testing himself in a way.

Draco Malfoy had noticed that, despite his illusions of the idea that he had, in fact 'grown up,' he still had the patience of a much younger, much less tolerable version of himself. He noticed it first with the appearance of the Muggle girl (whom he still thought was an absolute dunderhead). His immaturity had appeared beforehand, but it was disguised under the wrapping of 'This is a Frustrating Situation, Don't Worry, You Can Lose Your Cool.' After all, it was a bit excessive to (almost) scream at a little kid on a plane, regardless of the vomit covering ones shoes.

Of course, Draco still had to pride himself on his rather civil (albeit a bit defensive at moments) conversation with Granger when she first agreed to meet with him. Of course, it did help that she agreed to assist him as quickly as she did. His younger self would have immediately been affronted at the idea of not having his way. (And quite frankly, so would his older self. In his mind, he had been waiting for ten years, although Granger hadn't been privy to that information.)

But for some reason, the Muggle girl, young as she was, had once again brought out the immature hidden brat that Draco had attempted to bury within himself. In his defense, she was a bit infuriating. Really. She was.

But now, Draco was trying to prove to Hermione – with whom he had been arguing with on and off through the course of this day because seriously, this should have been much easier – that he had matured. And honestly, when he thought about their situation, he knew that Severus wouldn't make it easy to find him. And bugger Granger for thinking this was _easy_. She hadn't been puked on.

Little did Draco know that he really was proving himself to Hermione. Even when he had first approached her on this mission, she had been worried that he would have been just the old git Draco Malfoy, same old same old, just with a little more subtlety, but she had been pleasantly surprised. And when she hadn't answered his question right away (because of a bushy-tailed squirrel that scampered across the road), she had been astonished that he hadn't demanded a response. In all honestly, she was worried for a moment because she thought he might have somehow managed to fall out of the car (because considering his luck so far on this trip, that wouldn't be too unlikely) or (the more likely option) he might have fallen asleep because of all the food he had eaten so quickly. But when she had glanced at him out of the corner of her right eye (driving was odd in the States), he was just serenely watching her, waiting for her to answer but seemingly content to not bother her into answering before her time.

It was only when she reached the end of the Deer Road (as she would now know it as) that Hermione realized that she had yet to answer the patiently waiting Draco. As she turned left to head back towards the school, she spoke up.

"Well, there is a hotel that we can stay at…"

"Perfect."

"… but I was thinking it would be better to stay near the school considering the oddities surrounding this place."

"I don't care what you say. I'm not sleeping on a desk."

"I wasn't going to…"

"Considering your planning so far on this trip…"

"That is _not_ fair!"

"… I think it's very fair for me to make such an assumption. Or actually, my bad. You'll probably have us sleep in the Fashion room using the scrap fabric pile as a makeshift bed!"

"That's actually not a bad idea."

Draco sputtered and Hermione laughed. "Don't worry, only joking."

"Didn't know that you'd grown a sense of humor, Granger."

"Hardy-har."

Hermione turned the car back into the school parking lot as Draco heaved a giant sigh. "Seriously though, where are we going to sleep?"

"We're going to camp."

"… Can I sleep on a desk instead?"

Hermione turned the first left into the parking lot that Vera had stopped in that morning. She navigated the car over the deserted pavement until she found one spot that was half-covered by snow.

"Remember how that snow bank looks," she said, pointing at it.

Draco glanced up and gave a noncommittal nod.

With a flick of her fingers and a murmured charm, the pile of snow vanished and Hermione maneuvered the car into it. She pulled herself out of the vehicle and closed the door with a resounding slam. Turning to the trunk, she began to pull out their suitcases.

"Hurry up, Draco," she said. "Help me with these bags before someone comes by! And get me my purse, I left it on the center console."

Draco grumbled loudly as he got out of the car, but he was quick and helped Hermione pull out the last of their suitcases after depositing her purse on top of the vehicle. As Hermione locked the car, Draco cast featherlight charms on the packages and grabbed them.

"Lead on."

"Wait, I've got to cover this first," retorted Hermione. "I remember Vera saying something about us needed a permit to park here and I didn't get a good glimpse of one." She took out her wand and with a few flicks, the air around the car blurred and morphed until the snowdrift once again seemed to cover three-fourths of the spot. "Does it look the same?"

Draco nodded.

"Right." Hermione dusted her hands off and grabbed her purse from where Draco left it. "We're not going to go too far in. My charms will us hidden." She turned on her heel and marched into the forest, leaving Draco to reluctantly follow.

"I refuse to sleep on the ground. This is not what I signed up for," he grumbled as he tramped behind her, breaking sticks under his feet.

"Of course we're not going to sleep on the ground!" gasped Hermione. "Goodness knows how long we'll be here and I don't want to do that at all. We'll have a tent."

"A _tent_."

"A _magically enlarged_ tent."

"Well that doesn't sound too bad."

"It isn't."

"But where in the bloody hell do you have a tent."

"In my purse, of course."

Hermione stopped in a tiny clearing. "This looks good enough. Draco, can you put up the tent?"

"What?"

"I've got to put up the charms to keep Muggles away. You've got to put up the tent."

"_How_?"

"You've got arms and you've got legs and you've got a brain. Figure it out."

Grumbling, Draco summoned the tent from the never-ending purse. As he struggled with the fabric and the sticks, he grew increasingly agitated.

"Now I know what a House Elf feels like…"

"A House Elf would have thought to use magic by now."

**XX**

_52 Weeks of Writing 2013 –__same old same old, __BONUS –__ 'Now I know what a House Elf feels like.'_

_As Strong As We Are United – __hidden_

Yay! Another chapter! Please, please, please leave a review! It would mean the world to me :)


	15. XV

**Words: 1050**

**XX**

Weeks had gone by and Draco was getting impatient. The blustery cold of January in New Jersey had turned to the even colder of February. Although March was approaching, warm weather was far from everyone's minds. A snowstorm had closed the high school for the day and Vera had insisted on taking her newfound friends to quote "somewhere fun". This had proven to be quite the task because Vera discovered rather quickly that the amusement park she had hoped to go to was closed for the season. With a huff, she had decided that they had no choice but to stay in Medford and find some amusement there.

Draco, personally, was sick of the town. The first few days had definitely been entertaining but the novelty of the small town atmosphere with the people who all knew each other was fading away rather quickly. Part of the problem was that since everyone knew each other, all the little town occupants were very confused about where exactly Draco and Hermione lived. Of course, they couldn't exactly say that they were living in a tent on the grounds of the high school, nor could they say that they lived in the hotel (because they obviously didn't and Vera would 'drop by' eventually) so they found themselves in a bit of a bind. Strangely enough, the two had managed to acquire a rather large number of friends, despite (or maybe because of) their personalities.

Hermione had always been a know-it-all, and age hadn't diminished that quality, merely lending it an air of subtlety. She was still a bookworm and although school wasn't vital to their mission at all, she continued to study for the exams in classes like Statistics and Latin and Chemistry just for the sake of absorbing more knowledge.

Draco, meanwhile, still had his acerbic personality although it too like Hermione's know-it-all-ness had softened with age. At a rather modest thirty-two years of age (he would be thirty-three that June), he still had the air of a boy who grew up thinking someone was constantly holding dung under his nose. Now, of course, he had the decency to not sneer at every moment of his life, but it was amazing that he managed to hold civil conversations around the Muggle teenagers at the high school.

The duo rather secretly thought that the reason everyone loved them so was because of their accents. Americans were rather easily amused in that regard.

The two had difficulties avoiding all of there 'where do you live' and 'can we hang out at your place' questions so they eventually just stopped answering them and settled instead for the 'we don't want to inconvenience the family we're staying with by having friends over, so could we meet somewhere else' to be met with joy by the questioner because they were just addressed as 'friend'.

But Draco was honestly sick of the town and as he sat on his surprisingly comfortable bed in their tent, he seriously considered throwing a tantrum and refusing to move or pretending to be sleeping so he wouldn't have to meet up with Vera _again_.

Eventually, Hermione ripped open the hangings that blocked Draco from the rest of the room and glared at him until he lethargically dragged himself up and buckled his feet into his dragon hide boots (to the Muggles, they were edgy snakeskin). Reluctantly bundling up against the cold and wind, they stepped outside and lifted the charms around the car.

Hermione's phone beeped, the tone ringing out a text message from Vera. She quickly typed something back and got into the car. They turned left out of the school and continued to drive straight rather than turning onto Deer Road. Just as he was about to doze off – Draco had discovered that something about sitting in these Muggle cars just lulled him to sleep – he noticed Hermione making a peculiar sound.

"Granger… are you _humming_?"

The sound abruptly stopped. "What's wrong, do I sound that bad?" she said, a bit of worry creeping into her voice. "I know I can't sing but… I thought it was impossible to sound bad at humming…"

"Congrats, Granger. You can ruin a song by singing."

Hermione pursed her lips and pointedly didn't reply, choosing instead to stare straight out the windshield as she turned carefully into the parking lot of the restaurant that Vera had told her to meet the group at. The group consisted of Vera, Dori, Rich, and a couple more members of the school musical. They were already present and waved cheerily at the two as Hermione parked neatly in drive.

She wore a grin on her face and Draco couldn't help but point it out.

"You look ridiculous with that grin. And you're practically fifteen years younger than any of them. D'you really think they're actually our friends?"

"They're nice kids, Draco."

"But they're _kids_, Hermione. They're way too young. And stupid."

"I seem to recall you being even more stupid at that age."

"I consider that an unfair evaluation of my personality."

Hermione raised an eyebrow. Draco rolled his eyes in response.

"Let's just get this over with."

"Come on, try to enjoy yourself. We're practically on vacation."

"Vacation involves neither homework nor missing people. Considering how this trip has both, I beg to differ."

Hermione rolled her eyes and half-walked, half-jogged towards their group of so-called friends. Draco followed at a more reasonable pace. By the time he approached, he sincerely regretted his decision to not rush because Hermione was enthusiastically agreeing to go see the school musical. He resisted the urge to scream.

As they were walking into the building, a tall man exited and in his rather violent effort to avoid bumping into Vera, he slammed right into Hermione and almost knocked her over. Only his speedy hand grabbing her shoulder steadied her and prevented her from taking an ungraceful tumble.

"Ah, Miss Granger," said a voice. Hermione's eyes snapped up, doubting her train of thought until the sight of Mr. Emir quelled her previous knee-jerk reaction. "Pardon me. I must get going."

He quickly sidestepped the rest of their little group and walked briskly out to his car. Hermione shook her head as she continued to re-dress her Chemistry teacher in billowing robes.

**XX**

_52 Weeks of Writing 2013 – __sleep_

_As Strong As We Are United –__ sing_

So I had to take two days to break from the obsessive updates, but you'll still be getting four more chapters before the ninth! :D And please oh please continue to review, I love hearing from you!


	16. XVI

**Words: 1089**

**XX**

The redheaded woman of house Number 13 had woken up early that morning because something was bothering her. She simply couldn't put her finger on it but ever since that stupid Muggle woman had dropped mail off at their house, something was decidedly _wrong_. It had been more than a month since that day. She knew this because she had taken to making tick marks on a calendar next to her bed to keep track of the days that had begun to melt together. Tomorrow was the day she had been counting down to. Tomorrow was the day that she would go with her brother to renew the curse.

She yawned and stretched languidly as she rose from her bed. The mattress was an absolute nightmare and the sheets were so thin that the cold snaked through with little effort. Thankfully, her magic was still as strong as it had ever been. After one look at the abomination that these Muggles called furniture, she had used a flick of her wand to turn everything in her room (she let her brother remain in the squalor, he deserved it) into the most luxurious comfort that money could buy.

She took a few minutes to change out of her nightdress into a fresh pair of robes for the day before crossing off the date (Thursday, February 23rd, 2012) with a black quill and sweeping out of the room. The rickety stairs creaked as she carefully walked down them, cautious since the second week of their stay when her brother had not only managed to step right though one of the feeble floorboards, but also tumble down the flight in the process of attempting to regain his balance. After successfully navigating the stairs, she made her way to the dusty kitchen in the hopes of acquiring and consuming a decent breakfast before her oaf of a brother woke up.

Sadly, she seemed to be out of luck, as the dark haired wizard was seated at the table, reading the newspaper while shoveling burnt, poorly scrambled eggs into his mouth.

"You look sick," she said to him, unconsciously caring after noting the dark circles under his eyes and the sweat on his brow. "And where did you get a paper?"

He looked up at her, a bit of egg stuck to his chin. "Stole it from Eleven," he said with a frown, "like usual."

She glared at him. "Why do you even bother? Don't tell me you _care_ what's going on with these Muggles?"

"I'm _bored_, okay? And you've never cared what I've done before, so why're you starting now?"

She rolled her eyes and moved to the pantry, grabbing a fresh plate for herself and summoning her mug from the rack across the room. "Did you make me any breakfast?"

"No."

She heaved a sigh, secretly grateful but outwardly annoyed, and flicked her wand once more. The stove flicked on as the fridge opened to allow an orderly line of eggs march through the air and break themselves into the warmed skillet.

With the lack of breakfast and the niggling feeling in the back of her mind, her day was not off to a pleasant start.

With her food finally prepared – two eggs, properly scrambled and not burnt – she settled down across from her brother and daintily dug into her fare with proper manners as suited a woman of her standing. Of course, a woman of her standing shouldn't have been cooking for herself, but she had to make do until her (their, technically, but practically hers since she was the one doing the work) revenge was complete.

She ate absently for a few moments before her eyes caught a glimpse of the back page of the paper. The picture wasn't moving, but two of the faces in the photograph were hauntingly familiar.

"Give me that!" she shrieked, startling her brother to the point where he almost tipped over in his chair. It was only with great luck that he didn't manage to upturn his coffee into his lap. He took a moment to calm his heart rate, a moment in which his sister began to tap her foot in annoyance, and then passed the paper over to her.

She flipped to the back page and stared in horror. Underneath the headline _Shawnee High School's Senior Class Volunteers at Local Park_, two hauntingly familiar faces gazed back at her.

She turned the paper so her brother could see the picture. "Can you explain this to me?" she asked, her anger barely concealed under her biting tone.

He looked at the picture for a few moments before shaking his head. "That can't be possible."

"Then how are they there?"

"I dunno… maybe the ones in the picture are just two Muggles who look like them?"

"And what are the odds of that?" she snarled, throwing the paper onto the table and jumping to her feet. "Do you know what this _means_? Not only are they in town, but they're traipsing around that damned school. And with the curse so weak, they might just accidentally break it! That cannot happen! This is all your fault!"

"Mine? How is this my fault?"

"You're the one who goes outside to steal the damn paper. Shouldn't you have found out about this sooner?"

"I…"

"See! It's your fault!"

He frowned down at his toes as his sister continued on her rampage.

"That mail we got, it must have been their confirmations! They must have taken our spots in the class! How d'you suppose we'll get into the school now without him recognizing us, huh? We can't just waltz in there recklessly and do something stupid! Let's just up and kidnap him, while we're at it!"

Silence prevailed in the room for a moment. The woman took deep breaths and smoothed her thin red hair back into a prim bun while her brother remained seated at the table, his brows furrowed deep with thought.

"Well, why can't we?"

"Why can't we _what_?"

"Just kidnap him. We've been sitting around here doing nothing for long enough. I've had enough of it. I want my damned revenge."

She finally had gotten her temper under control and with her brother's surprisingly brilliant suggestion, a smile began to form on her face.

"You're actually right," she said softly, sitting down once more. "We've been passive for too long. Tomorrow night. During that silly show those horrid kids are putting on. We'll take him then and no one will be any the wiser."

**XX**

_52 Weeks of Writing 2013 – Week 8 – __money, OPTIONAL – Muggles_

_As Strong As We Are __United –__ burnt_

_The Weekly Updater Competition – Week 2_

Here's another chapter for you guys! Please leave a review :)

There will be… three more chapters before the 19th, so happy reading! :D


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